Kingdom Hearts III: Breaking Dawn
by Micro Magic
Summary: Meet Bella, Edward and their troubled family right when a vampire decides to turn them in for making an immortal child, which was a misunderstanding. How will Sarox and his friends help out the vampires? And how will they avoid becoming the next meal?
1. Prologue: Sarox: A Different World

**ATTENTION**

_This story will combine different characters from other projects. While it maintains to the original story plot, certain plot twists will be added. The only original character from my creation, Sarox, is the son of Sora and Kairi from _Kingdom Hearts_, who receives the Keyblade and sets on a journey under King Mickey's orders to provide as much protection as possible to the worlds. Traveling alongside this young boy is Marlene from _Final Fantasy VII_, Max Goof - Goofy's son and a Royal Knight-in-training; and Pete Junior, son of the mischievous Pete._

_Hope you'll enjoy reading this story._

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SAROX

"We'll be arriving in the next world soon," I heard Max tell us from his captain seat.

He and Max had managed to keep our Gummi Ship stable thus far. Though they were skilled in flying the skip, there was always a risk that a meteor could hit our ship and we would crash, in space. Marlene and I had mostly watched them navigate the ship, and picked up some skills to help handling the engine. But for the moment, I just felt like laying low; my technical skills weren't as good compared to theirs.

I settled on the backseat to let them pilot.

Then, Marlene came in from the kitchen. Her light brown hair tied into a ponytail looked a bit wet - I guessed she was getting sweaty by all the steam in the kitchen. It took a second to realize that she was carrying a tray of coffee cups in her hands.

"Coffee, anyone?" she asked.

"I'll have one, thank you," I answered a little loudly. She handed me a cup with a charming grin spread over her lips. I had to smile back. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

I didn't notice anyone else in the room.

"You just have to get so mushy, don't ya?" Max say loudly and broke our eye sharing. His face was still buried behind his seat. Marlene's smile made me completely forget there were two more persons - if you could call them 'persons' - in the room.

"Mind your flying, Max," I replied in a minor wave of annoyance. Max was always the teaser, sometimes I wondered if he and Uncle Goofy were really related, they had almost nothing in common other than their dog-faced looks.

I sighed, then took a sip into Marlene's coffee. Suddenly, I felt a soft shock flow down my spine. All the annoyance I felt before suddenly faded into my veins, replaced with a warm in my stomach. Marlene's magical handmade coffee always made me feel like the happiest person alive. The need to look into her eyes just rose from my stomach up to my brain, and the next thing I knew I was looking into her eyes and she was looking into mine.

"We have arrived, guys," PJ called from his seat, and that broke our eye contact. "Here's 'Forks'."

"'_Forks'_?" Max asked teasingly. "Sounds like a weird name to me. All right, everyone, prepare for landing."

I took a last, long sip into the coffee, then handed the cup on the tray in Marlene's hands. She immediately placed it on the round table next to us. Then we dashed off to the exit together, followed by Max and PJ.

"Let's see what Forks looks like," I heard PJ say behind us.

As soon as we were all in the departing chamber, Max looked up and called with his breath.

"Ready for departure!"

We were immediately surrounded by neon flashlights emanated from the walls. And then the landing began.

The moment my feet touched a muddy ground, I realized we had arrived. The forest around us was already withered, I was only able to recognize the piercing cold air to realize it was winter season. Snowflakes were already falling down upon us, it would have been enjoyable if the wind hadn't taken away the joy. It made my body shiver uncontrollably.

I wrapped my arms around my torso - my clothes were not prepared for the cold. I looked behind me and realized I wasn't the only one - Marlene had wrapped her arms around her torso as well, she was shivering more than I did. PJ had taken out his magic staff and wiggled his fingers around its head (I hoped he was performing some sort of magic to ease the cold for us).

Max was the only one who seemed to enjoy the snow, a large grin spread across his face. He sniffed.

"Ah! The winter breeze is so refreshing," he said as he sniffed. No doubt, he was the only one expressing joy for the season. Suddenly, his expression shifted in an instant. His eyes were filled with worry and anxiety. The joy from the breeze gone somewhere I couldn't find.

I turned to PJ, he didn't look worried though. He was absorbed by the fire he lit on his staff. Marlene was standing right beside him, her hands over the fire that was warming her up. I turned to Max again, his anxiety hadn't eased.

"Max, what's wrong?" I asked.

"There's something in the woods," he answered without looking at me.

Then a big shadow leaped out of the bushes. We all jumped backward at the sudden appearance of the unexpected creature. It took me a second to realize it was HUGE, the height of me, PJ and Max if we were climbing on top of each other, but it would still be taller. Its muscular torso resembled the size of a bear. It would look like a bear if you looked at it from a distance. The baseball sized eyes and russet brown fur were so beautiful that they were something to look at, if you could count out the uncanny, sharp fangs that looked like they could rip us apart with one bite.

Max laid paralyzed on the ground in between us and the giant wolf, a first target. It growled as it looked into Max' fearful eyes. My fear of the giant wolf suddenly vanished... and changed to instant anger. If it wanted to bite my friend's leg off, it would have to go through me.

It charged. I leaped as fast as I could to stand in between the wolf and Max. In that instant, I drew the Keyblade into my hand, flipped it under my arm... and swept upward to knock the wolf's mouth. It fell heavily to the ground.

"Pull yourself together!"

Max struggled to his feet, he was still trembling. And then, he held out his hand and the shield appeared in a form of light. PJ ran to his side, his wand ready to fight. Marlene dashed to my side, her Keyblade was already in place without my noticing.

While I concentrated on the angry wolf, who had stood up on his paws by now, a cry echoed to us from my right side. The voice was human, and so young that it could only come from a little girl. The wolf reflexively turned to the direction of the sound, his eyes less hostile. At least I thought they were. Before we could regain enough attention to the wolf, it darted to the trees, headed toward the little girl.

"Oh, no!"

In a sharp reflex, I pointed the Keyblade up in the air and concentrated. The power instantly expanded from my heart and exploded out of my body as I felt a new strength rise inside me. My outfit was now covered in crimson red and night black colors, and each sleeve and pant leg was tainted with a fleur-de-lis. I felt a new, solid pressure that appeared in my other hand, it was my other Keyblade. Immediately, I dashed past the trees to follow the wolf. There were hundreds of trees in front of me, but I managed to run past them without problem. I was as fast as the wolf, and I knew I would definitely be able to catch up with him. Hopefully before he got to the little girl.


	2. Chapter 1: Bella: Strangers

BELLA CULLEN

The three of us, Jacob, Renesmee, and I, were hunting together. The diet of animal blood wasn't Renesmee's favorite thing - and that was why Jacob was allowed to come along. Jacob had made it a contest between them, and that made her more willing than anything else. She had a competitive nature, and the challenge of beating Jacob made her excited to hunt.

"Jacob," I said, trying to reason with him again while Renesmee danced ahead of us into the long clearing, searching for a scent she liked. "You've got obligations here. Seth, Leah-"

He snorted. "I'm not my pack's nanny. They've all got responsibilties in La Push anyway."

"Sort of like you? Are you officially dropping out of high school, then? If you're going to keep up with Renesmee, you're going to have to study a lot harder."

"It's just a sabbatical. I'll get back to school when things... slow down."

I lost my concentration on my side of the disagreement when he said that, and we both automatically looked at Renesmee. She was staring at the snowflakes fluttering high above her head, melting before they could stick to the yellowed grass in the long arrowhead-shaped meadow that we were standing in. Her ruffled ivory dress was just a shake darker than the snow, and her reddish-brown curls managed to shimmer, though the sun was buried deeply behind the clouds.

As we watched, she crouched for an instant and then sprang fifteen feet up into the air. Her little hands closed around a flake, and she dropped lightly to her feet.

She turned to us with her shocking smile- truly, it wasn't something you could get used to - and opened her hands to show us the perfectly formed eight-pointed ice star in her palm before it melted.

"Pretty," Jacob called to her appreciatively. "But I think you're stalling, Nessie."

She bounded back to Jacob; he held his arms out at exactly the moment she leaped into them. They had the move perfectly synchronized. She did this when she had something to say. She still preferred not to speak aloud.

Renesmee touched his face, scowling adorably as we all listened to the sound of a small herd of elk moving farther into the wood.

"_Suuuure_you're not thirsty, Nessie," Jacob answered a little sarcastically, but more indulgently than anything else. "You're just afraid I'll catch the biggest one again!"

She flipped backward out of Jacob's arms, landing lightly on her feet, and rolled her eyes - she looked so much like Edward when she did that. Then she darted off toward the trees.

"Got it," Jacob said when I leaned as if to follow. He yanked his T-shirt off as he charged after her into the forest, already trembling. "It doesn't count if you cheat," he called.

I smiled at the leaves they left fluttering behind them, shaking my head. Jacob was more a child than Renesmee sometimes.

I paused, giving my hunters a few minutes' head start. It would be beyond simple to track them, and Renesmee would love to surprise me with the size of her prey. I smiled again.

Usually Edward and I came together on these hunting trips. But Edward was with Carlisle today, planning the trip to Rio.

While my thoughts were lost in the near future, my eyes swept the mountainside routinely, searching for prey, searching for danger. I didn't think about it; the urge was an automatic thing.

Or perhaps there _was_ a reason for my scanning, some tiny trigger that my razor-sharp senses had caught before I realized it consciously.

As my eyes flitted across the edge of a distant cliff, standing out starkly blue-gray against the green-black forest, a glint of silver - or was it gold? - gripped my attention.

My gaze zeroed in on the color that shouldn't have been there, so far away in the haze that an eagle wouldn't have been able to make it out. I stared.

She stared back.

That she was a vampire was obvious. Her skin was marble white, the texture a million times smoother than human skin. Even under the clouds, she glistened ever so slightly. If her skin had not given her away, her stillness would have. Only vampires and statues could be so perfectly motionless.

She was a stranger to me. I was absolutely certain I'd never seen her before, even as a human. None of the faces in my muddy memory were the same as this one. But I knew her at once from her dark golden eyes.

Irina had decided to come.

I wondered if she would guess immediately who I was as well. I half-raised my hand, about to wave, but her lip twisted the tiniest bit, making her face suddenly hostile.

I heard Renesmee's cry of victory from the forest, and saw Irina's face jerk reflexively to the sound when it echoed to her a few seconds later. Her gaze cut slightly to the right, and I knew what she was seeing. An enormous russet werewolf, perhaps the very one who had killed her Laurent. Her face spasmed in pain.

She turned back to me, and her lip curled back over her teeth. Her jaw unlocked as she growled. When the faint sound reached me, she had already turned and disappeared into the forest.

I sprinted into the forest after Renesmee and Jacob, unwilling to have them out of my sight. I didn't know which direction Irina had taken, or exactly how furious she was right now.

It took me two seconds to reach them.

Jacob's ears flattened as he took in my expression; he crouched forward, baring his teeth. His eyes raked the forest.

Renesmee was as alert as Jacob. Abandoning the dead stag at her feet, she leaped into my arms, pressing her hands against my cheeks.

"It's okay, I think," I said.

Before I could pull out my cellphone, I caught a new scent that dragged my attention. The scent wasn't Irina's; it was too human. It took me half a second to notice a red figure coming our way, his speed too fast for a human.

_What's going on?_ I thought to myself.

By the smell of his scent, I could tell this boy could only be human, even though his speed was telling the opposite. Has a human ever been able to run as fast as a vampire? The spiky chocolate brown hair blew back over his head as he dashed toward us. His glowing hands were armed with a pair of weapon I'd never seen before, even in books. The weapon in his right hand had the shape of a large key, only a hundred times bigger. It had a golden handle, attached by a long silver keychain extended from the hilt, and a blue rainguard. The blade was silver and had teeth.

The other weapon looked slightly similar to the giant key, but in a different appearance. Its handle had the shape of two shooting stars, and its blue blade had stars decorated on it. The teeth was a crescent moon attached by a star. Under the handle was a keychain designed with a crescent moon.

None of the colors matched his crimson red and black colored outfit. His hands were glowing in red electricity.

His angry ocean blue eyes were the opposite color to his outfit.

"Look out for the wolf!" he yelled loudly, then hurled the starry weapon out of his hand. In a sharp reflex, I knocked away the weapon with my hand before it could crush my friend's nose.

The boy looked shocked by my reaction. Then I realized he was trying to protect me and Renesmee from Jacob. A giant wolf in front of two people would make too much of a scene. To him, Renesmee and I would look like two helpless people about to be devoured by a giant wolf. He didn't know Jacob was safe.

"Hey, what're you doing? That wolf's right beside you," he asked in a surprised tone.

"No, he's not dangerous. The wolf's with us," I answered quickly, I wasn't sure if he caught it perfectly, but I didn't have time to think right now.

I pulled out my cellphone and dialed the numbers. Edward answered on the first ring. Jacob and Renesmee listened intently to my side as I filled Edward in. The boy looked in confusion. He couldn't keep up with what I was saying. I was speaking too fast for his human ears to hear.

"Bring Carlisle," I trilled as fast as I could. "I saw Irina, and she saw me, but then she saw Jacob and she got mad and ran away, I _think_. She hasn't shown up here, but she looked pretty upset. If she doesn't show up, you and Carlisle have to go after her and talk to her. I feel so bad. And I have a human boy right beside me now, he is seeing Jacob in his wolf form and tried to attack him."

Jacob mumbled. The boy continued to look in the same confusion.

"What?" Edward asked me.

"Just hurry, I'll explain everything when you get here."

"We'll be there in half a minute," Edward assured me, and I could hear the whoosh of the wind his running made.

I cut the line and put the cellphone back into my pocket, then turned to the mysterious boy. His clueless expression didn't waver.

What am I gonna do?

He'd seen us with a giant wolf, and how I'd managed to knock away his weapon. If we ran now, he would see our inhuman speed. But if we stayed, he would risk seeing a vampire come toward us. He would know too much about us. At any rate, his life would be at risk.

A new scent trail caught my attention, it came from another human and then something similar to a dog. I heard Jacob sniff as he caught the trail with me. The scent grew closer as I heard running steps approach us.

_"Perfect,"_ I said to myself sarcastically as I shook my head. _More people to put their lives at risk because of us._

It did not take long before they caught up. I wasn't sure if we should run or stay.

Then, they came. A young, brunette girl with her hair wrapped behind her head into a ponytail. Her silvery short-sleeved dress was almost compatible to the season. She looked at least three years under my age (not that I was aging anymore). In her hand was a similar weapon I saw from the boy. Its teeth was decorated by a bouquet of flowers followed by a shade of sunset colors on its blade and wrapped by a beige vine that fell down to one side of the hilt. On the hilt's other side was a blue octave wave. Following the hilt was a red silken connected to a star-shaped keychain.

That wasn't what really caught my attention, though. It was the appearance of the other two figures that ran closely behind her. Both had the shape of a black dog, only their lower bodies resembled that of a teenage human.

One of them was overweight, slightly shorter than the other. His face was round like a curl ball. His ball-like torso was covered by a burgundy colored shirt and a deep blue vest. In his right hand was a twisted wooden stick with a headless puppet attached to the top by a chocolate brown hat.

The other dog-faced figure was a complete opposite in size.

His torso looked thinner. Slightly more muscular, I think. He wore an unfamiliar red jacket with two pockets on each side, and a yellow shirt under it. In his hand was a round silver shield with three circles connecting to each other, the lower circle bigger than the upper two. It resembled a mouse, in a childish way. They both wore blue pants.

It took them seven seconds to catch up to the boy.

The fat dog-boy - I just decided to call him that - pointed his staff in our direction, then magically exploded a ball engulfed in flames, flying right toward us. Before any of us could react, the human boy threw his weapon in our direction and sent the fireball in a different direction, missing Jacob by inches and exploded in a tree. The weapon fell to the ground, then disappeared in a flash of light and reappeared in the boy's hand.

"Sarox?" I heard the young girl say. I realized it must be his name.

"It's okay," he said.

I wasn't sure what his expression was.

"She stopped me when I tried to fight the wolf, so I guess it's okay to say that he's... tame."

I wouldn't have suspected if he thought Jacob was my pet. Why else would I defend such a huge wolf? But I wasn't sure how to explain.

Before I could come up with an explanation, Sarox' clothes suddenly burst in a flash of light, and when it faded, they changed into different colors. His shirt was white, wrapped in blue patterns, covered by a black jacket. The pants were almost as white as the shirt. And the shoes were gold; the same color as my family's eyes. The same color my eyes will change into after a few months. I also noticed the fleu-de-lis symbols on his sleeves and pant lets were gone.

As we stood there unmoving, Jacob and I heard the sound of an approach we did not recognize.

When the sound came, though, it was very familiar. And then Edward was at my side, the kids jumped back as his speed startled them, Carlisle was a few seconds behind. I was surprised to hear the heavy pad of big paws following behind Carlisle. I supposed I shouldn't have been shocked. With Renesmee in even a hint of danger, of course Jacob would call in reinforcements.

"Whoa, where... where'd you come from?" the thin dog-boy stammered. He was totally shocked, as with the other three. Sarox covered the girl with his back, looking defensive.

I looked over my shoulder and realized that Edward and Carlisle were glaring at them in curiosity. I guessed two dogheads in human bodies surprised them too.

I immediately shifted back to the problem ahead. "Irina was up on a ridge," I told them, pointing out to the direction where I remembered the spot. If Irina was fleeing, she already had quite a head start. Would she stop and listen to Carlisle? Her expression before made me think not. "Maybe you should call Emmett and Jasper and have them come with you. She looked... really upset. She growled at me."

"She did what?" Edward said angrily.

Carlisle put a hand on his arm. "She's grieving. I'll go after her."

"I'm coming with you."

"No, you can do more good here." He glanced at the four weird kids. The fat dog-boy looked pretty shaken by the big wolves. Leah, the smaller grey wolf, growled hostilely. I assumed she must've read Jacob's thoughts about their attempted attack. Even if the incident could be explained, it was not forgivable, especially for Leah. Jacob barked once at his pack, and they all calmed down. Leah backed away slowly. Seth, the sandy colored wolf, laughed lightly.

"I'm coming with you," Edward insisted.

He and Carlisle exchanged a long glance - perhaps he was measuring Edward's irritation with Irina against his helpfulness as a mind reader. Finally, Carlisle nodded. Edward turned back to me.

"Take them back to the house, explain everything," he told me, pointing to the kids. "There's something about them."

"Gee, you think?" I said sarcastically.

He didn't counter. Instead, he took off with Carlisle to find the trail without calling Jasper or Emmett.

Jacob huffed impatiently and poked my back with his nose. He must want Renesmee back at the safety of the house, just in case. I agreed with him on that, and placed Renesmee on his back. She aimed agilely and held her hands in a handful of fur. I turned back to the weird kids.

"Please, follow us," I said pleasantly.

The human boy, Sarox, stepped carefully forward, putting his friends closely behind him.

"I'm 'Sarox'," he greeted, and then went on to introduce the others. "This is Marlene, Max, and PJ."

"I'm Bella," I replied and lifted my arm to introduce the others. "This is my daughter, Renesmee; and Jacob."

I pointed to the other two wolves.

"Leah and Seth."

Leah still looked pretty unpleasant. They must've been talking in thoughts, because they turned their heads to Jacob before turning back to the kids and bending their bodies.

I turned my head to face Jacob. He gave me a nod.

"They're inviting you to ride on them," I told them.

Sarox eyed at the two wolves hesitantly and then went on to sit on Seth's back. Then he reached his hand out to Marlene. She approached carefully, took his hand and climbed up on Seth's back.

PJ climbed onto Leah, he seemed scared by her. But she did nothing to repel him, and he climbed onto her back easily, and then Max joined him.

And then, we darted off back to the house where Renesmee would be safe.

Since the hunting trip was aborted, she would have to drink donated blood. She would be thrilled.


	3. Chapter 2: Sarox: House of the Undead

SAROX

As soon as Bella brought us into her family's house, her family gathered at the front door and she introduced us to each other. Jacob, the wolf, went off into the forest with his pack. I didn't want to know where they were heading or why.

"This is my family, Rosalie, Esme, Jasper, Emmett, and Alice. - This is Sarox, Marlene, Max, and PJ."

Everyone in Bella's family had adorably beautiful features; attractive eye colors, perfectly smooth skin, and flashing hairstyle individually. The blond woman, Rosalie Hale, was more beautiful than any of them. I almost felt jealous. Some of them approached Max and PJ in curiosity, their strange appearance raised quite an intrigue to them.

It wasn't until after Bella explained that they were a coven of vampires and the wolf was a werewolf named Jacob that we realized we had entered vampire and werewolf territory. I remembered reading about them in the local library on Destiny Islands. Vampires were undead beings that feed on the blood of the living at night; and werewolves were creatures that came out during a full moon as giant wolves to attack the living. I shook off the memory. Even though I had seen alot since I got the Keyblade, the idea of being around vampires was still uneasy for me.

We weren't very welcome either. Rosalie yelled at Bella for bringing us to them.

"Do you realize what you're putting at risk, Bella?"

The big, tall, muscular guy calmed her down. Bella told me his name was "Emmett". Esme, the "mother", on the other hand, greeted us kindly. She seemed so harmless I had to greet back. She was the only 'person' here who showed any appreciation of welcoming. Right after our greeting, a seven feet tall, muscular man entered the house. He was the size of the vampire Emmett, but taller. Bella went to the front door, looking somewhat amused by what she was about to say.

"Sarox, Marlene, Max, PJ. This is Jacob, the Alpha of the wolf pack."

We dropped our jaws in shock. I heard Emmett burst into laughter behind us; Jacob laughed too.

Bella quickly filled her family in on her side of the story, about the vampire that she saw before my friends and I appeared, Emmett laughed at it. Marlene stood closely by my side, and I let her. Even though the family told us they were different from others of their kind, I still found it hard to not guard Marlene from them. Esme looked more understanding.

The four of us sat on the living room couch; Marlene sat next to my right side, Max was on her other side. To my left was PJ.

The vampire sitting closest to us was a honey blond haired male, who Bella introduced as Jasper. He would look at us occasionally with an expressionless gaze, which frightened PJ a little. Sitting beside him was a short spiky-haired brunette named Alice, who's petite body resembled that of a pixie I met before when I arrived in Neverland, despite the fact that they were both different in size. Bella had her daughter, Renesmee, in her arms now. Esme seated beside her.

Rosalie was sitting on a wooden chair across Bella, Renesmee and Esme, her glare angry, almost furious. The muscular Emmett stood closely beside her, his hand softly brushing her back. Jacob leaned against a wall at the entrance to the living room, distancing himself from all of us.

I wished I could stand in the back with Marlene.

"Why would Edward want _them _here?" Rosalie asked angrily, glaring over her shoulder to us after Bella told them what Edward suggested.

"I don't know," she answered.

Everyone stared curiously at us.

"I guess their strange dog faces intrigued him in some ways."

"Not to mention the way they dress," Emmett said teasingly.

Rosalie's expression remained the same.

I looked to Marlene's eyes; she was calm, but the fear behind it was obvious. And then I realized I was a little scared too. We were in a house full of vampires; and a werewolf to add.

_"Stay calm, stay calm,"_ I thought to myself.

"You're scared," Jasper said, probably to all four of us. It was the first time he spoke since we came into the house.

"No, I'm not," I heard PJ say. His voice was shaky.

He grinned at us lightly.

"Don't worry."

Suddenly I felt relieved, the heavy pressure of my fear felt lighter. I looked to Marlene. She was smiling. I shifted to Max and PJ; they didn't seem as anxious, and I knew they were feeling the same. Whatever it was that made us feel so free, I would take it. I didn't want to feel burdened.

"Don't worry," Jasper said calmly. "We don't feed on humans."

Alice looked us with an enchanting smile, though not quite as enchanting as Marlene's. Still it was something to look at.

"No, but we do feed on dogs," Emmett added evilly.

That burst everyone into laughter, except Rosalie. Jacob was laughing too. I supposed I shouldn't have laughed with them, but the enthusiasm caught up with me. After a minute, I heard giggles beside me and looked over my shoulder. Marlene was grinning and Max laughed. PJ was giggling when I turned to him.

The joined laughter ended when a whooshing sound came through the door. We turned our attention to the front door and saw Edward and Carlisle.

"Did you find her?" I heard Bella ask them.

They looked into each other's eyes for a moment, and then he shook his head. His expression unreadable. Jasper turned to Alice.

"Do you know where she's heading?"

I didn't know what he meant. I looked over to Alice, her eyes were looking far into the distance.

"I'm not sure," she said. "She still hasn't decided where to go yet."

_"Hasn't decided?"_ I thought to myself.

"Alice can see the future," I heard Edward say. His eyes focused on me for a moment, then turned to Alice. It was as though he was talking to me, like he knew what I was thinking.

"Actually, I do know what're you thinking."

I jumped. Oh my, he did know!

"Calm down," he said calmly as he joined the room. "There's no reason to be startled."

Jacob and Emmett laughed mockingly at me. Edward crossed the living room and leaned down on Bella and Renesmee, embracing them tightly.

"I guess you didn't see that coming," Emmett said as in a teasing tone. "My brother here can hear what you're thinking. And Jasper over there," he pointed to Jasper. "He can control your mood. That's why you felt so relieved a minute ago."

He laughed an evil laugh. What else was he going to mock us with? My throat felt a strong rise of heat. It burned to the point that I could scream.

"Jasper," I heard Edward say calmly. And before I knew it, the fire disappeared down my stomach. I couldn't even be sure of where it had disappeared to. Like the way my anxiety resurfaced before, somewhere deep inside me, I knew my fire would steam again after Jasper lost his focus. But it was easy to let it go for now.

"Emmett, you shouldn't make fun of our guests like that," Carlisle said as he entered the living room. His smooth expression made it clear that he was the leader... the father of the family. For a head of the family, he was surprisingly nice and welcoming. Warm. There was trust in his liquid golden eyes. They were emanating a wave of kindness. A kind, compassionate vampire.

Esme rose up from her seat and embraced Carlisle in a lovely hug. I felt Marlene pull my arm lightly; when I looked to her, she was eyeing the couple with a grin. I immediately got the silent message. Not that it wasn't obvious. Then, they removed their arms and Esme shifted her grip to his waist.

I noticed that Edward grinned at me. He read my thoughts again.

_"No mean to be rude, but is there any way for you to stop listening to my thoughts?"_ I thought. _"It's very disturbing."_

He just shook his head lightly, there was a teasing expression in his eyes. And then he turned to little Renesmee. They glared into each other's eyes for a long moment, after that Edward released a sigh.

"Don't worry, nothing's going to happen," he said under his breath.

Jacob crossed the room and leaned down beside Renesmee. I wondered why he was so fixated on the little girl. IThere was something emanated from her beautiful bronze hair, her chocolate brown eyes and perfectly smooth skin, but there was also more about it. Something Jacob shares with the little toddler alone. Edward turned to look over his shoulder at me, his expression a little cold and unreadable. I dismissed it.

Marlene released my arm, stood up and walked carefully toward the four. Rosalie and Emmett examined her movement but did nothing. She stopped in front of the baby girl and lowered her knees. Renesmee placed her little hand on Marlene's cheek.

Marlene stiffened like she'd been stunned by an electric shock. I rose up from my seat and called the Keyblade into my hand. If Marlene was in danger, I wasn't going to sit back and watch. Jacob stood up from his position and blocked my path, hissing aggressively. I could hear Emmett's evil giggle behind my back. Max and PJ were right behind me.

Edward stood up and held his hands in front of him.

"Calm down," he said. "She's just sharing her thoughts."

I looked under Jacob's arm. Marlene's eyes were focused on Renesmee. Bella grinned lightly as if she knew what the baby was showing her.

After a minute, she dropped her hand. Marlene laughed lightly as if she'd seen something amazing. Her eyes still focused on Renesmee. I relaxed and lowered my armed hand. Jacob still glared at me angrily, as if I had done something to infuriate him.

"Thank you for showing me," she said in a smile, as if she'd been won over. "And here we thought we'd known everything about you and your family. Hehe!"

"What did she show you?" I asked curiously.

She turned to me, reached out with her hand and pushed Jacob to the side. I stepped forth, taking her hand into mine.

"Let her show you."

She grinned at me delightfully and then pulled me closer and down on my knees. I was in front of Renesmee now. I looked to Marlene insecurely. She encouraged me with a light nod. I looked to Renesmee again and she placed her hand on my face.

I gasped and stunned like I'd been shocked, just as a vivid image appeared in my mind. I could see still through my eyes, but the picture filled my mind as Renesmee gave me a cheerful glance.

The illusion in my head revealed an environment of a dank little forest. In the center, I could see three human-sized figures standing closely to each other, it took me a second to realize that the figures were Bella, and Edward, and a cheerful and young-looking Jacob. In Bella's arms rested a little baby girl; she looked younger, but I knew she was Renesmee. Beams of sunlight shone upon them, and Bella and Edward's faces and arms illuminated in sparkles like a set of flawless diamonds. Renesmee laid her arm next to Bella's. Her skin only released a faint glow. It was so faint that it could go unnoticed by normal people. She frowned at her skin, discouraged by her parents' beauty.

_"You're the prettiest,"_ I heard Bella assure her.

I could see her crimson liquid eyes. They fit her sparkling skin like a pair of red diamonds surrounded by white crystals.

_"I'm not sure I can agree to that,"_ Edward said.

Bella turned to answer him, but instead she got stunned into silence by the sight of sparkling face.

Jacob held his hand in front of his face, pretending to shield his eyes from Bella. _"Freaky Bella,"_ he commented.

_"What an amazing creature she is,"_ Edward murmured in a dazzling smile.

The rest of their family stood behind them, most of them wore happy smiles on their dazzling faces, except Emmett, who seemed a bit pissed.

The image was filled with cheer and warmth, something that could only come from a real family. It dazed me to see how a group of vampires could share so much happiness together.

Then the image shifted to the family's front porch. She walked on the grass, launching toward a smiling Jacob. He had his hands laid out for her while stepping back cautiously as she stepped forth. Her walk was gracious even for a newborn baby.

_"C'mon, Nessie. You can do it,"_ he encounraged. His smile in the picture made him look surprisingly younger, unlike the face that I saw in reality. Then again, I realized I only met him a few hours ago, how much did I really know about him?

I noticed the brilliance in their eyes as they played. It shone invisibly, but not unnoticed. I saw the enjoyment, and realized that they were having fun. Even though one of them was too big to play such games. Jacob was showing a soft side of his character. Cheerful, gentle and it was pure.

I felt the joy as it filled my heart.

Then the picture shifted to a furnished white room. Renesmee sat still like a statue on a little chair as a smiling Rosalie ran a comb down her hair, gently and slowly, while her other hand was busy holding the strands up to make sure her comb wouldn't rub the rest and ruin her image. She had the exact same brilliant grin as Jacob.

The picture shifted once more; this time to another white room. Alice put a pink baby dress over Renesmee's body. As soon as she finished putting the dress on, she tied a pink ribbon over her head. They were a matching couple. After she was finished dressing up Renesmee, she took a step back and Rosalie approach with a digital camera in front of her face and shot a picture at her. Alice then approached to Rosalie's side as she brought the camera closer to her eyes, and they watched the new picture in excitement. Then, they turned their glances to Renesmee, she was curious about her look. Alice and Rosalie met each other's eyes for a moment.

Then Rosalie turned to her little niece.

_"You wanna see, Nessie?"_ she asked with a bright smile.

She answered with a nod. And then Rosalie flipped the camera around and leaned it closer with her hands. In the photo, she was dazzling and graceful. Her bronze hair gave the pink ribbon a second brilliance. The pink dress and white socks sparkled on her body. It was as though they made the outfit to fit her elegance. This was her; _Renesmee Carlie Cullen_.

After that last picture, my eyes flipped back to normal as soon as Renesmee's hand was no longer touching my face. Dazed as I was, a laugh burst through my chest.

"Nice to meet you, _Nessie_," I chuckled. I could hear Bella hiss in a disgusted yet low sound. I turned to Marlene. "Is that what she showed you?"

She nodded.

Renesmee reached out her hand to touch Bella's face.

"What does she want?" I heard Jacob ask. He took a step forward.

"She's thirsty," Bella told him. "She didn't drink her prey today."

She rose up from her sofa, Marlene and I rose to our feet and took a step back to give them room. "Carlisle, I'm afraid we need to feed her with human blood."

"Sure."

She walked past us with Renesmee as they left the room, Edward followed them. He halted to a stop when he reached the door and met Carlisle's gaze and walked away again.

Carlisle approached us with a generous grin.

"You're Sarox, right?" he asked.

I nodded nervously.

"May I have a look at that Keyblade of yours?"

I gasped, my body froze like I'd lost control of my arms and legs. I was probably as still as a statue now. The others gasped in shock as well. He didn't drop his grin. It never occurred to me that someone would actually know about the Keyblade. Surely my father, Uncle Riku and King Mickey had quite some experience with the weapon, but people were usually kept in the dark about the Keyblade. Let alone the outside worlds. I wondered how he would know about the Keyblade.

"You're probably wondering how I would know about the Keyblade," Carlisle said.

I breathed deeply as soon as I began to regain control over my body. "This way, please," he gestured to the door.

* * *

"I read about it a few hundred years ago while I was staying in Volterra," he explained after we followed him to his office. "Said the Keyblade is supposed to have enormous power that could either bring destruction or salvation to the worlds. I never encountered a person with such efficient weapon, though, so I got curious when I saw it in your hand."

I reached out with my hand, and summoned the Keyblade. I realized it was becoming a flex of muscle to summon it.

Carlisle examined it carefully with his eyes; there was curiosity in his expression. Then, he turned to a book shelf behind him and pulled out an ancient book without even having to search through the rest. He opened the book and flipped through the pages as he turned back to us. Then he stopped and turned it over in my direction. The picture to the left caught our attention.

"Is that a Keyblade," Max asked in shock.

The weapon in the picture disposed a long heavy body, its tilt had a crimson brace, attached by a three-pointed symbol. The body extended in silver with hints of bronze. Carlisle smiled a dazzling smile.

"A leader of the Volturi made this portrait after he encountered a Keyblade warrior from another area," he explained.

"Long ago, the Keyblade wielder came to our world and gained attention of our kind," he looked over our shoulders. We followed his glance and saw a big golden portrait displaying four men standing on a balcony. The first three were found in the center of the portrait, all wearing golden robes; impossible to miss. The fourth man stood on a sideline to the right, still impossible to miss but the fragrance of attraction came second-hand. I recognized the man."

"Is that _you_?" I asked Carlisle without turning back to him.

"Yes," he answered and then went on. "From a few centuries ago. That's the Volturi."

"Volturi?" Max asked.

We were still unfamiliar with this world's customs and history. I found this story interesting and opened my ears to it.

"They uphold the laws of our world, you could say they are the closest thing we have to royalty. They were more educated and refined than some of the vampires that I encountered before I became one, so I stayed with them for a few decades. During my stay, Aro showed me this book and told me of the incredulous powers of the Keyblade and those who possessed it. I wasn't comfortable with their way of living and they didn't like mine and tried to persuade me to abstain to theirs; eventually I left to move with the times. He gave me this book when I left."

Curiosity was filling my head now. "Was that how you met the others of your family?"

He nodded, his expression was thoughtful. "I found Edward dying of Spanish influenza. His mother begged me to save him with all my power before she died.

"_What others cannot do, that is what you must do for my Edward,_ those were her last words. So I brought him to my house and turned him right after she passed away. He wasn't pleased with this 'life', but he learned to adjust to it. A few years later, I found my wife Esme after she fell off a cliff, and though she was still alive, she was slipping away quickly, so I changed her. We found Rosalie dying in the street so I changed her to save her. And two years later, Rosalie found Emmett being mauled to death by a bear, so she carried him back to me and asked me to change him. She said there was something about him that made her want to save him, but she wasn't sure if she could change him herself. Alice and Jasper were already vampires when we met them. Alice's visions led her to us and we welcomed them with open arms. Last year, Edward met Bella when she was still human and they fell in love. After the Volturi found out about her, we agreed to let her become one of us. But Edward wanted to marry her first, and she did. But then, she got pregnant with Renesmee, so the plan was put on hold for a while. After Renesmee was born, Edward changed her."

"Is that why Bella's eyes are redder than yours?"

"Yes, newly-turned vampires have red eyes, because they still have their own human blood lingering in their systems, which also makes them physically stronger than older vampires. Vampires that drink human blood have darker red eyes. We have golden eyes because we have changed our diet to animal blood instead of human. Bella has only been a vampire for two months, but she's doing extremely well adjusting to our lifestyle."

I took a moment adjust this. Then another question popped into my head. "So you mean Nessie is like half-human?"

"Yes. And the images that she showed you, that was her gift inherited from her father, but for some reason it works in a different way."

"You mean, like he can read our minds and she can let us read hers?" Marlene asked, curious too.

"Yes."

I felt a wave of sorrow and sadness emitting from those beautiful golden eyes, and began to regret for asking about his family, it was like snooping around others' personal lives.

"Anyway," he continued and changed the subject back to the Keyblade. "Aro told me what he had witnessed in the power of the Keyblade, but he never had the chance to claim it - the last wielder died fighting in an ancient Keyblade War that inflicted our world long ago. After he passed away, the weapon disappeared without a trace. Aro never met anyone with a Keyblade since then. He was almost obsessed with acclaiming it and its wielder to his coven."

"So this Aro guy wanted the Keyblade to himself?" PJ asked.

I turned my gaze to Marlene, and she met mine. There was worry in her gentle blue eyes.

"Aro was always compelled with gaining more power to the Volturi. He's always collected vampires that he thinks are useful in maintaining position, like a gifted magician or a strong fighter. It makes him confident and secure. But if he sees a threat coming, he will be sure to eliminate it at all costs. I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted you to join his clan."

That assumption sent an uncomfortable shockwave down my spine and to my toes. _A vampire would turn me into one of them just to make me a part of his group?_ The thought shook me horribly, I felt my arms trembling. Marlene touched my arm and I met her gaze; she threw a soft grin at me and all the tremble inside me disappeared. It made me want to grin back.

"So why are you curious, mister?" I heard PJ ask Carlisle. "About the Keyblade, I mean."

"Ever since I read it in the book, I've been fascinated with the way the Keyblade connects to the heart. It made me believe that a heart was more than a mere center of existence to an individual being, and that got me interested. Of course, I'm in no desire of claiming the Keyblade to myself, but it has given me great fascination."

PJ's stomach suddenly grumbled so loud that it covered half the room. He wrapped both hands around it and chuckled at Carlisle in embarrassment. Carlisle grinned at him, and then placed the book on his working desk. "I'm sorry I took your time. You must be starving right now, I'll have Esme make something for you; Jacob is staying for dinner anyhow. Please, follow me."

He went toward the door.

"You can cook?" PJ asked. His eyes were flashing.

Carlisle turned to us again.

"We buy food to keep up pretences, and we're trying to persuade Renesmee to food instead of blood. And since Jacob stops by all the time, so we're always prepared."

He went downstairs and we followed. PJ was most excited. Max whispered to my ear as we walked.

"Sarox, you don't think he'll report you to the Volturi, do ya?"

I considered it for a moment.

"He seems like a nice guy," I replied gladly. Yes, Carlisle was nice enough to trust secrecy to. Hopefully, my assumption was right.


	4. Chapter 3: Sarox: House of the Beasts

SAROX

"Say, how about I take you down to La Push?" Jacob asked us while his mouth was stuffed with food.

I was eating the whole time, my mouth was too food-absorbed to respond, but my ears paid attention to their conversation the whole way. PJ just had been served with another plate of giant hamburger; steaks, greens and gourmet. I wondered how big his stomach could be, it was something to get used to.

"Where did you say?" Max asked.

"La Push: it's the werewolf reservation. The Cullens here aren't allowed to go there."

"Why not?" Marlene asked curiously.

There was still so much we didn't know about the vampires and the werewolves.

"Because Carlisle made a treaty with them a long time ago," Esme explained. "We're not allowed to cross on over to their land or bite humans regardless the reasons."

Some of the discussion we had with Carlisle resurfaced pulled me into confusion. At the same time, a memory that Renesmee had implanted resurfaced. Her mother, Bella, gave birth to her two months before today; she was still _human_ then, and only became a vampire right _afterwards_. I didn't see it in a picture: she had placed a completely different type of memory into my head. One that could only be brought up by a mental trigger. I opened my mouth...

"But Bella turned _two months ago_," Marlene said, taking my line.

"Yeah, only because Jacob made the exception possible," Emmett remarked with a chuckle. "It was hard to pull it off, though."

Alice took a step forward.

"In order to save Bella and Nessie, Edward had to ask for Jacob's permission to let her become one of us, " she explained. "His great grandfather was the wolf chief who made the treaty, so he had the right."

"Edward transformed her right after she gave birth to Nessie," Jasper set into the conversation. "It nearly killed her."

Jacob swallowed the last of his food and then stood up from his seat. "I think I'd better leave now and fill Sam in on what happened today," he changed the subject, and handed the plate to Esme. "Thanks for the meal."

"You're welcome anytime, Jacob," she replied with a smile.

Jacob turned back to us.

"So, are we going?"

"_We_?" I repeated the word. He said the word like we were of the same species.

"Trust me, it wasn't my idea. I'm not supposed to tell you anything about us, but Carlisle thought since you guys know about their kind, there's no reason why we shouldn't let you know about ours, too. And Seth's eager to meet you again. In human form, no less."

I thought back to the two large wolves (other than Jacob) that we met in the forest earlier. One of them must have been Seth.

"I think it's best if you leave," I heard Rosalie murmur behind us. "This dog here is reeking our house, as are the rest of you."

That did it. I felt the fire steam up to my throat.

"Hey, if you don't like the smell of us, why don't you just get outta here and go far away?" I asked fiercely. Those words would have left any woman wounded, but Rosalie just glared at me in anger. She approached, but then Edward appeared in a flash and pulled her arm, restraining her. Bella was already standing at the door with Renesmee in her arms.

"You should give some respect to our house guests, Rosalie," he said calmly. "Carlisle takes great fondness in them. But if you don't like their smell, why don't you go track down Irina with Jasper?"

Edward released her arm. She gave me an uncomfortable, angry glare, but decided to step back. The fire in my chest lowered as she did.

Marlene placed a hand over mine, her face was smooth and calm. She was probably worried that I would start an unwanted fight with Rosalie, and was gonna try to interfere before it all went out of control. Edward's interference gave her some peace of mind.

I was ready to flip at Rosalie for her insult, but I realized that if my confrontation had caused pain to Marlene, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I took a quick decision.

"So, ready to go?" I tried to change the atmosphere. Marlene smiled at me, and I knew it was working.

"Yeah!" Max replied as he rose. "I'm getting tired of all the sitting."

"Do you think we can have some more down in La Push?" PJ wondered.

His mouth was stuffed with food.

"We can prob'ly get some more at Emily's place," Jacob answered with a chuckle.

PJ swallowed the last food on his plate and then gave it to Max, who handed it over to Esme.

"Thank you so much for the treat. It was wonderful," he commented.

"Yes, thank you, Mrs. Cullen," Marlene said politely.

"Why, you're welcome," she replied, and added. "And please, call me _Esme_."

Jacob turned to the door, where he wished good night to Bella and Nessie.

* * *

We all said our good nights to the family and left with Jacob.

"Sure you don't need a light or something?" Jacob asked as he guided us through the pitch black forest. It was much easier to see through the thick, unfamiliar woods during the day, when the sun lit over the sky and forced away the shadows. Darkness had now wrapped around the mountains and the skies, leaving only behind a clear moonshine over us. Jacob didn't seem to have much problem, though. He had senses beyond ours.

"Thanks, but I think we have something better," I answered.

I looked over my shoulders to PJ, and then to Marlene. We lifted our weapons high up over our heads and called in unison:

_"Fire!"_

Powerful sparks suddenly exploded on top of our weapons and resulted in flames, but they had no damage on the weapons. Jacob stared at our enchanted torches in a mesmerized expression.

"Impressive," he commented, his eyes locked on the flames. "Are those some sort of enchanted flame?"

"Yeah," Marlene answered his question. "I guess you could say that."

A minute later, he removed the shock from the flames, turned his back to us and began to guide us through the dark woods. Something in my heart told me that his senses would have brought him through the forest without much problem. But now that he needed to look after us, he had to restrain the desire to turn into a wolf and run away from us.

I decided to ask a few questions to keep the walk pleasant.

"So, you've known Bella and the others for a long time?"

His back was still facing us.

"Bella is my best friend. We've been friends since we were little. She wasn't living in Forks then, she was living with her mom. After her mom remarried, she moved to her father to let her mom spend more time with the guy. Quite a noble act, if you ask me."

"And the Cullens?" PJ asked.

He was always more fascinated with the supernatural and mystic, so I wasn't surprised to hear him ask.

"Well, I've heard stories from our tribe ever since I was born. Said that my great grandfather met the Cullens a long time ago. He was the chief of the Quileute tribe then, so after they claimed to be different from others of their kind, my great grandfather made the treaty with them to secure our land's safety. I always thought they were just silly old horror stories, until I started phasing ten months ago."

"Yeah, that's the part I'm most curious about: What's your tribe's story? I mean, how did you become werewolves?" PJ asked in fascination.

"Well, it sorta started a long time ago with one of our ancestors called "Taha Aki", one of our great chiefs. You see, they used to practice the arts of spirit travel. And one day, some guy used the opportunity to possess Taha Aki's body and destroyed his own. Taha Aki's spirit found a wolf to help him warn his people, but that backfired badly. So he took over the wolf's body and turned into a wolfman and stopped the guy permanently."

He halted to a stop and looked over his shoulders. His grin was pleasant, but there was something in his eyes. I couldn't see through all the darkness, even though I had the torch to support me.

"Um, I don't think marshmallows like you can take in whatever the story's coming to," he said mockingly, then turned away and started walking again. "So anyway, that's the legend of the Quileute tribe. Taha Aki became a werewolf that way, and the genes passed on to us."

I found the story uncomfortable.

"So, you've been a werewolf since you were born?" Max asked.

"Well, not exactly. We only start phasing when a vampire moves to town, or somewhere near our reservation; pretty much become the protectors of La Push. Once we come of age, the fever sets in."

I frowned. I realized it was a story thing that Jacob had gone through. To become something he'd never asked to be; to bear a burden more important than he had imagined.

"Is there any way for you to stop?" I asked, trying to maintain as blank as possible to hide my sympathy.

He chuckled.

"That would be a bit difficult," he said.

There was silence (minus the wind and walking).

"Is Bella the reason you're so friendly with the Cullens?" Marlene asked.

"Part of it. The other reason was Nessie."

"Bella and Edward's daughter?" PJ murmured.

"Yeah." There was something in his voice. "I'm bound to her, and they love her as well. That eventually got us through the issues."

"_Bound to her?_" Max repeated the words in question.

"It's a wolf thing called '_imprinting_', Max," I explained as soon as another unseen memory popped into my head. "Jacob and those with the same genes find their soulmates that way. Their destinies become intertwined. It's a really rare thing and doesn't happen to many of them."

He nodded in agreement. Suddenly, he stopped and raised one arm to halt us. A minute later, he turned to us with a grin spread across his face. "Let's meet my pack."

He began to head toward a different direction, and we followed.

_"It wouldn't be wise to wander in an unfamiliar forest without a guide,"_ I thought to myself.

Not long after we left our path, footsteps started approaching in the darkness, and then four people joined us. Three boys and one girl, most of them half-naked, wearing only shorts and shoes. The girl wore a top around her torso. They were all russet skinned and black haired. I guessed two of them were the wolves we met in the forest earlier, and that made it feel awkward to be near them.

"Hello," a younger boy greeted as he approached us, waving. "I'm Seth Clearwater; the tall wolf you met earlier."

Marlene and I chuckled as we waved back.

Jacob introduced us to the other three. "That's Embry, and Quil, and Leah: Seth's older sister."

"Hiya," Max greeted.

One of the boys took a step forward - Embry or Quil, I presumed - and waved at us friendly.

"Embry Call," he introduced himself.

The other boy approached to Embry's side: by now I knew his name was probably Quil.

"Quil Ateara! Nice to meet you."

"I'm Sarox, this is Marlene, Max, and PJ," I introduced us like a representative. I didn't know where that role came from, it merely appeared from somewhere deep inside my head, like a caged dog waiting to come out.

"I'm taking them over to Emily's and thought I'd let you meet them before we get there," Jacob explained to his pack, and then turned to us. "The ones you met today, guys, are the Clearwater siblings - Leah and Seth."

"Oh, hiya," Max waved.

Seth waved back, but Leah looked away, she didn't look happy with our encounter. One minute passed, and she turned back to Jacob.

"I'm hungry, I'm going out on a hunt."

"Okay," he murmured in a frown.

With that, she turned around and darted into the dark forest, leaving the rest of us.

I met Marlene's eyes, confused by Leah's disgruntle and the dazzlingly beautiful eyes in my view. I shook my head to break the contact.

"So, shall we go?" Jacob asked us. "It's getting really late, we're gonna miss dinner at Emily's if we don't go now."

He turned back to his group.

"Care to join me?"

Quil and Embry shared looks, then turned to Jacob.

"_Sure,_" they said in unison, and then turned to Seth.

"Why not?" he answered, a large grin spread across his face.

We turned to the previous path again and walked through the big forest.

* * *

About forty minutes later, we made our way out of the woods and came to a large wooden house with lights brightening the insides. As soon as we left the forest behind us, Seth sprinted to the front door and shouted.

"_Hey, don't eat all the food! We got new guests here!_"

Ten seconds later, a huge, muscular man appear at the door.

"Seth," he said as he opened. "How've you been, buddy?"

Their hands clapped in high-five style as soon as they approached each other close enough. Quil, Embry and Jacob approached as they greeted the muscular man.

"Jacob."

"Sam," he greeted in a low, calm tone. I noticed there was something behind his voice, but couldn't quite decipher it. He pointed to us. "They're the new guests. Hope Emily's made enough food for them too."

He nodded. "Yeah, of course."

"Yay!" Max exclaimed enthusiastically at his answer. Apparently, he had burnt some calories during the walk, his stomach would probably start grumbling soon if he couldn't satisfy it with more food soon.

Sam glared at us for a moment, his eyes focused on PJ and Max. I guessed they had never encountered any creature from Disney Town for the residents to look at the two boys in such awkwardness. A minute passed, and he turned back to Jacob. "Are those the kids Seth told us about?"

He nodded. "They caught us in wolf forms and tried to attack me."

"Funny thing was," he looked over his shoulder at me. "One of them actually managed to knock me off my paws, despite my being stronger and bigger than him."

Sam turned to me in shock. Embarrassing. I shrugged at the thought.

"Fascinating," he murmured.

Jacob took a deep breath and stretched his shoulders. "Anyway, got anything left to eat? Thought I could offer them something."

"Sure," Sam spoke as he turned back to him and then to us again. "Come on in."

"Yay!" Max and PJ shouted excitedly, in unison.

As they ran past Sam and Jacob into the house, I noticed that Sam's eyes were locked on them, as if he'd just found a chest of gold and wanted to take the treasure into his hands.

"Come on in," Jacob called to us and gestured into the living room.

I met Marlene's eyes for a moment, and then we walked toward the house together. As soon as we were inside, Sam shut the door behind us. Everyone was gathered around a table, chattering and staring bewildered at Max and PJ, who were the only ones standing around the table rather than sitting. Embry, Quil, and Seth had already taken seats with four unfamiliar faces. Three of the unfamiliar boys wore tight shorts, but showed a bare chest. The last one had a tight sleeveless T-shirt on his torso.

"Where did the dogs come from?" the one with the T-shirt said mockingly.

"Hey, pay a little more respect to our guests, boys!" a girl shouted.

I looked to the left around the corner, and caught sight of a black haired woman who was making food. The right side of her face was destroyed by three long scars on her right side, stretching from eye down to chin. The right side of her lip would forever have a frowning expression. When she looked up at us, her left half-face displayed a pure, beautiful feature. A smile was wearing her left face, but the right side was forever a frown. I looked to Marlene. She gave me a frown, her eyes sympathetic for the woman.

"Who are they?" the woman asked, her eyes focused on Max and PJ.

"They're Max Goof and Pete Junior," Jacob introduced them, then turned to us. "This is Marlene and Sarox."

She turned to us, her left lip glowering. "Hi, I'm Emily Young."

"You hungry? I'm making beef here. These boys have such big stomachs, I'm not even sure if I'll make enough for them."

"Sure, great," Marlene answered, her frown turned to smile. "Uh, why don't I help you out? I can cook too."

She half-smiled at us.

"Well, in that case, why don't you help me make some pancakes? I got the eggs ready."

Marlene left my side and goes around into the counter. Emily handed her a bowl of eggs, and she began to work. Sam joined the boys at the table. Jacob came to my front and pointed his thumb over his shoulder to the table.

"C'mon," he said, and then traced one arm around my shoulder and pushed me forward.

Sam and Jacob leaned on the counter while I went around to Max and PJ's side, hoping to help them ease up the awkward glances. It helped.

"So, I heard you knocked Jacob off his ground today," one of the unfamiliar boys said in a teasing tone. "I would've liked to see it for myself. I'm Jared, by the way."

He offered his hand. I hesitated, but shook it off and accepted. While we shook, I felt the horrifying heat burn my skin. It wasn't strong enough to burn through my hand, but it was still uncomfortable. It was fire.

He noticed my uncomfortable feeling. "What? I burn you?"

The other boys looked teasingly at us. As soon as Jared released my hand, I pulled it behind my back. The other boys burst into laughter, like seeing a clown trip on a banana skin and fall into a pool of water. It may have sounded fun to them, but it sure made my chest feel highly uncomfortable, like a massive water was going to run up to my throat and make me vomit.

"Hey," the clothed boy said, distracting me. "I'm Paul. Would like to see how you knock over a wolf sometime."

Two other boys waved at us. The boy on the left side had curled black hair; the other one's head was shaved, his mustache made him seem older than his real age. The clear features on their faces and young cheekbones, however, exposed that they were mildly younger than me.

"I'm Brady," the shaved boy introduced himself.

"And I'm Collin."

I looked over to the counter to Marlene, she grinned cheerfully at me. I smiled back.

* * *

After dinner, the boys headed for home, except Jacob and Sam.

"So, we'll see you tomorrow, right?" Seth asked as soon as I followed him outside with Marlene to see him off.

Seth had been the most curious about us, he kept asking questions about our homes and our families during dinner, we managed to reveal enough to satisfy his curiosity and keep our stories as much to ourselves as possible.

I thought for a second. "Sure, we'll be sticking for a while anyway."

"Excellent." There was enthusiasm in his voice. "Well, good night, then. Oh, and by the way, Marlene, you make amazing pancakes. Would like to try'em again tomorrow."

"Sure," Marlene promised.

We wished each other good night and he ran into the woods.

As soon as I found myself alone with Marlene, we stepped down the stairs and sat down. My eyes turned to hers. They glittered like clear moonshine. Perfectly flawless diamonds.

I released a sigh. "Peace at last."

She chuckled.

"What's so funny?" I asked curiously.

"You've been a _little_ anxious during dinner," she replied lightly.

I was too busy thinking of ways to answer the boys' questions that I had little time to notice Marlene's awareness of my anxiety. Too troubled by curiosity to notice anything else.

"It's just so hard to come up with answers good enough to keep the truth behind our origins. My voice was like trembling when I spoke, you probably noticed that."

She looked down on the ground, and then up again. "You don't like it, do you?"

I knew what she meant. "It does feel abnormal for me to hide things from friends. I know we've only just met them, but it still doesn't make me feel good to lie."

She didn't say anything for a moment, then turned to me with a cheerful smile. "You know, friends don't have to tell each other everything. What matters is how you trust each other. How your hearts become one."

I recognized that sentence. "Spoke to my father, haven't you?"

She chuckled, her smile remained on her face. "Uncle Sora is right about that, you know. The hearts of those you connect with lightens your own heart. I'm sure our new friends feel the same way. And right now, I can tell there are some hearts that're gonna need your help to enlighten them, too."

It took me a moment, but I finally understood. The Cullens' were still unsolved, this Irina had run off without any direction. I was fairly told that Alice could only see the future once her subjects make a decision, and even when we left the house she was still unable to see anything. I didn't understand what had caused her such agony, I wasn't told of that by Bella. But she did tell me that she saw her with Renesmee and Jacob in wolf form. Perhaps, one of those two upset her. Jacob was the strongest subject of suspicion. He was standing right next to Renesmee, who would only look like a little vampire to Irina. Maybe that was the reason. I wasn't gonna make any confirmation tonight. I would wait and hear the Cullens' assumptions in the morning. Hopefully Rosalie would not be repulsed by my smell then.


	5. Chapter 4: Edward: The Future

EDWARD CULLEN

_"Did you find her?" _Carlisle asked me in his mind before he could ask with his mouth.

I shook my head. He sighed.

_"Where did she go?"_ I heard his thought say.

For the past days, I had been unable to track down Irina's whereabouts, despite my mind reading. I asked Alice to keep track of her future, though I understood she would only be able to see a certain future once Irina'd made up her mind. Her pain and agony, however, had clouded her sense of direction. I would understand why she would feel such hatred toward us _and_the werewolves who sided with us last summer. They were the ones who killed Laurent, her mate, and smashed her heart. She would not be able to take a direct turn until she'd calmed down. I wasn't going to be forgivable about Laurent, though. He had tried to kill my Bella last spring, when I was away and unable to protect her. Had the wolves not interfered, she would have been dead by now; and I would have lost my proof of existence, my heartbeat, even though it wasn't beating. I had gone to the Volturi to provoke them into killing me once, and I would do again in a heartbeat.

This also brought me to clarify Irina's heartache, she was feeling exactly what I felt almost nine months ago. I didn't need to read her thoughts to know it.

Days had passed, but none of us could find her. Carlisle and Jacob had to keep our four house guests entertained to keep their minds off of our troubles. Carlisle was especially infatuated with Sarox' Keyblade, a weapon he remembered was essential to the maintenance of our world.

Alice ran her fingers down Esme's crystal vase in the big room, her eyes were blank as she tried to keep track of Irina's future. My mind allowed me to keep track of what she saw, but the pictures in her mind only showed blurs and blind spots.

Then before we knew it, we were both struck by an unexpected force. It was not a shock, but a gravitational pull. I froze as pictures filled my head. Then we saw them.

The Volturi. Aro, Caius, Marcus, the entire guard. Sulpicia, Athenodora...

They were coming to us. Everything that Alice saw, I was intercepting them.

_"What?"_ I heard Jasper ask Alice.

Alec, Jane, Felix, Demetri, Chelsea...

_"What, Alice?"_ Jasper asked again. _"What _is_ it?"_

_"They're coming for us,"_ Alice and I answered in unison. _"All of them."_

_"The Volturi,"_ she moaned her own sentence as I moaned; _"All of them."_ Our thoughts were one.

_"Why? How?"_

_"When?"_

_"Why?"_ I heard Esme echo.

"When?" Jasper thought to himself before he said it in his mouth. _"When?"_

The picture was now showing a slow falling of snowflakes. Small, gentle, but even in this image, the Volturi was passing through the snowing weather. Aro, Marcus, and Caius headed up front while the others followed. Irina was closely behind the three leaders. By the telling of time difference, it will be in no longer than a month.

_"Not long,"_ we said together.

I allowed her to say her own while I continued to grasp the vision. _"There's snow on the forest, snow on the town. Little more than a month."_

_"Why?"_I heard Carlisle ask.

_"They must have a reason. Maybe to see...?"_ Esme tried to answer, but Alice interrupted before I could. We could see the pictures more clearly now.

_"This isn't about Bella. They're all coming - Aro, Caius, Marcus, every member of the guard, even the wives."_

_"The wives never leave the tower,"_ I heard Jasper say it in a flat tone. _"Never. Not during the southern rebellion. Not when the Romanians tried to overthrow them. Not even when they were hunting the immortal children. Never."_

This would be the first time they left, then. The images I kept intercepting from Alice's vision showed every single member of the Volturi; the leaders, the wives and the guard. There was no mistake.

_"They're coming now,"_ I whispered.

_"But _why_?" _I heard Carlisle ask, and there was extreme curiosity in his mind. _"We've done nothing! And if we had, what could we possibly do that would bring _this_ down on us?"_

Maybe they wanted to make sure that we wouldn't try anything if we wanted to. _"There are so many of us. They must want to make sure that..."_

_"That still doesn't answer the crucial question! Why?"_

I could hear everyone's thoughts now. There was curiosity under the shock.

_"Go back, Alice,"_ I heard Jasper. _"Look for the trigger. Search."_

There were blind spots in the vision as Alice tried to look for the cause of their arrival. The pictures turned blur and fuzzy. She couldn't find it. I couldn't find it.

_"It came out of nowhere, Jazz. I wasn't looking for them, or even for us. I was just looking for Irina. She wasn't where I expected her to be..."_

Then she found the picture she was looking for.

Irina ran through a blur of massive green and yellow. I could hear the wind in reality whoosh past something heavy and shatter into pieces, but my mind was fixed on Alice's vision. I could see Irina now in front of someone who disturbed me the most of time: she was facing the Volturi. Aro, the man who loved power over all else, gracefully welcomed her with open arms.

_"She decided to go to them. Irina decided to go to the Volturi. And then they will decied... It's as if they're waiting for her. Like their decision was already made, and just waiting on her..."_

No one spoke again, but I could hear the shock in their minds. _Why would she go to the Volturi in the first place? Have we done something beyond forgiveness? Have we crossed the line for siding with the werewolves? _They came from Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, and Carlisle. Renesmee was only curious about the Volturi, the family we hadn't told her yet.

_"Can we stop her?"_ I heard Jasper ask Alice.

We saw Irina running. From her position, it would take two hundred miles to get to Volterra. For a vampire's speed, it would take her a half-day to arrive. We would be too late to catch up with her now.

_"There's no way. She's almost there,"_ Alice answered.

_"What is she doing?" _Carlisle asked, and then his mind spoke. _Even if we sided with werewolves, it would not be necessary to bring the entire Volturi upon us._

_Picking a fight with the wolves, I'd bet,_ I heard Emmett's mind.

_"Think of what she saw that afternoon,"_ I heard Bella speak in a low voice, interrupting Emmett before he could say his idea. _"To someone who'd lost a mother because of the immortal children. What would Renesmee look like?"_

As the image of Alice's vision faded, I realized where Bella was getting at. _"An immortal child," _Carlisle and Esme's thoughts echoed.

Yes, to someone who didn't know the truth and were watching from a distance, Renesmee's beauty, speed and strength would only make her look like one thing: an immortal child. The prohibited existence of such a creature. Irina's family, the Denali Coven, lost their mother to such a crime. The Volturi made her pay the price with her death for creating such a child. After that, the orphaned Denali sisters appraised to the laws above everyone else.

Bella got to the answer before the rest of us.

"An immortal child," Carlisle whispered.

The answer sent a sharp pain into my frozen heart. Everyone else felt the same pain. The name had been put on my child. My half-human daughter. Was this it? The life that I have finally found, the happily ever after that came with my Bella and Renesmee. Is it coming to an end, just like that?

I knelt down beside Bella and Renesmee and wrapped my arms around them. I didn't want to let any of them go.

"But she's wrong," she said. "Renesmee isn't like those other children. They were frozen, but she grows so much every day. They were out of control, but she never hurts Charlie or Sue or even shows them things that would upset them. She _can_ control herself. She's already smarter than most adults. There would be no reason to execute something like that. No rules were broken."

Her words turned to babble until they eventually broke off into silence, because no one was responding to her words. We knew the truth, but it wasn't enough. I'd seen the Volturi many times, and I'd heard enough of their thoughts to know that they would stop at nothing to achieve their goal. Once they make a decision, there was no turning back. With Irina's thoughts to prove her accusation, they would turn us into lawbreakers. But Aro also wanted one thing, to take Alice into his collection. This was his chance.

I whispered quietly in Bella's ear. "It's not the kind of crime they hold a trial for, love. Aro's seen Irina's _proof_ in her thoughts. They come to destroy, not to be reasoned with." I couldn't believe what I was saying.

"But they're wrong," she said again.

"They won't wait for us to show them that," the words pierced through my skin as I said them.

Renesmee, my daughter, had become the subject of a mistaken crime. She was sleeping peacefully in Bella's arms, both of them a part of my everything. And soon, we would be destroyed altogether. The thought made me ill. I wanted to bite Irina's neck out to make her stop.

"What can we do?" she demanded.

I read her expression; our real happy forever had barely begun. I could not imagine it coming to an end in one month.

_"The Volturi will kill us,"_ I heard Esme's doubtful mind. And then Jasper's; _"We have to leave."_ And Rosalie's _"We can't escape."_

Emmett was the first to speak with his mouth. "We fight."

_"I'd rather die than put Alice's life in danger," _Jasper's mind gritted sharply at Emmett's suggestion in my head, and then growled outloud. "We can't win."

The others had the same mind.

"Well, we can't run. Not with Demetri around," Emmett made a disgusted sound, his thoughts reacted the same. _"I'd rather die than run from a fight. We just gotta come up with a plan, it's not like we can run anyway,"_ his thoughts ran so fast I could barely keep up. Then he spoke, "And I don't know that we _can't_ win. There are a few options to consider, we don't have to fight alone."

I could see them in his mind now; Denali, nomads, our friends.

"We don't have to sentence the Quileutes to death, either, Emmett!" Bella shouted loudly.

"Chill, Bella. I didn't mean the packs. Be realistic, though - do you think Jacob or Sam is going to ignore an invasion? Even if it wasn't about Nessie? Not to mention that, thanks to Irina, Aro knows about our alliance with the packs now, too. But I was thinking of our other friends."

I listened carefully to his gathering thoughts, his ideas, and found them actually quite reasonable.

"Other friends we don't have to sentence to death," Carlisle said.

"Hey, we'll let them decide," he said again. "I'm not saying they have to fight with us."

The plan was being formed as he spoke. First time he'd ever used his brain to something useful, I was impressed. He had never been the type that thinks before acting.

"If they'd just stand beside us, just long enough to make the Volturi hesitate. Bella's right, after all. If we could force them to stop and listen. Though that might take away any reason for a fight..."

A hint of smile appeared on his face now. I wanted to slug him, but his idea halted me, and then I could hear the others'.

"That will indefinitely give us an advantage," I heard Esme's thoughts respond to Emmett's idea. "Yes, that makes sense, Emmett. All we need is for the Volturi to pause for one moment. Just long enough to listen."

Rosalie was uncertain, though. _"We need to collect as many people as possible, or the Volturi will never listen. How many are we going to need? Can we really let them carry our burdens as well?"_

"We'd need quite a show of witnesses," she spoke outloud.

Esme continued. "We can ask that much of our friends. Just to witness."

"We'd do it for them," Emmett said.

"We'll have to ask them just right, Alice murmured as she delved into her vision again. "They'll have to be carefully shown."

"Shown?" Jasper asked.

Alice and I looked down on Renesmee, I knew what she meant; Renesmee's gift could provide useful information to make our friends believe us.

"Tanya's family, Siobhan's coven, Amun's. Some of the nomads - Garret and Mary for certain. Maybe Alistair."

Carlisle and Jasper started to think about the friends whom we could ask help from.

"What about Peter and Charlotte?" Jasper asked.

"Maybe."

"The Amazons!" Carlisle suggested. "Kachiri, Zafrina, and Senna?"

Alice's vision suddenly shifted to a rain forest, and then disappeared. Her eyes returned to the present. Something was off.

"What was that?" I asked in a whisper. "That part in the jungle. Are we going to look for them?"

"I can't see."

Her vision shifted to fast I couldn't see where she was heading.

"We'll have to split up and hurry - before the snow sticks to the ground. We have round up whomever we can and get them here to show them." She zoned again, this time her eyes were set on Eleazar; a member of the Denali Coven, and former member of the Volturi Guard. "Ask Eleazar. There is more to this than just an immortal child."

The vision turned fuzzy, unclear. I couldn't make out what she was seeing.

"There is so much. We have to hurry."

"Alice?" I asked. "That was too fast - I didn't understand. What was - ?"

"I can't see!" she snapped at me and saw our door getting knocked on by someone she couldn't see, but was easy to guess. "Jacob's almost here."

_"That dog again,"_ I heard Rosalie. "I'll deal with..."

"No, let him come," Alice said quickly, her voice straining higher with each word. "Sarox, Marlene, Max and PJ will be here, too."

She grabbed Jasper's hand and began pulling him toward the back door. "I'll see better away from Nessie, too. I need to go. I need to really concentrate. I need to see everything I can. I have to go. Come on, Jasper, there's no time to waste!"

_"I need to concentrate, I need to concentrate, I need to concentrate,"_ the words repeated in her head.

We all could hear Jacob, Sarox and the others on the stairs. Alice yanked, impatient, on Jasper's hand.

_"If I'm away from all of this, it'll be better!"_ those words practically screamed.

"Hurry!" she called back to us." You have to find them all!"

"Find what?" Jacob asked as Max shut the door behind them. "Where'd Alice go?"

_"How should we tell them?"_Carlisle thought.

_"How'll we break the news?"_ Emmett thought.

Everyone thought, but no one answered; we all just stared.

Jacob, Sarox, Marlene, Max, and PJ shook the wet from their bodies. Jacob pulled his arms through the sleeves of his t-shirt as his eyes settled on my sleeping Nessie. "Hey, Bells! I thought you guys would've gone home by now..."

_"What's with the looks?"_ Jacob thought as soon as he noticed the trouble on our faces. The room's atmosphere was touching the others as well, drawing them in.

They glanced down, eyes wide, at the wet spot where Alice had dropped Esme's crystal vase when the first premonition hit, the scattered roses, the fragments of the crystal. Jacob's fingers quivered.

_"Something must've happened,"_Sarox thought.

"What?" Jacob asked flatly. "What happened?"

No one found the words, and neither could I.

He crossed the room in three long strides and dropped his knees beside Renesmee and Bella.

"Is she okay?" he demanded, touching her forehead, and tilting his head as he listened to her heart. "Don't mess with me, Bella, please!"

"Nothing's wrong with Renesmee, Jacob," she said in a broken tone.

"Then who?"

My frozen heart ached at the answer.

"All of us, Jacob," she whispered, her voice now in agony and pain, just like the rest of us. "It's over. We've all been sentenced to die."


	6. Chapter 5: Bella: Defection

BELLA CULLEN

We were at our limits - frenzied into absolute stillness. Carlisle had barely been able to move his lips to explain it all to Jacob and our guests. The retelling seemed to make it worse; even Emmett stood silent and still from then on. And Alice never came back.

It wasn't until the sun rose and I knew that Renesmee would soon be stirring under my hands that I wondered for the first time what could possibly be taking Alice so long. I'd hoped to know more before I was faced with my daughter's curiosity. To have some answers. Some tiny, tiny portion of hope so that I could smile and keep the truth from terrifying her, too.

Sam heard everything from Jacob - the wolves were readying themselves for what was coming. Not that this preparation would do anything but get them killed with the rest of my family. Sarox and his friends returned to La Push in Jacob's insistence to keep them safe. We did not want to involve them into our situation.

As soon as the sun broke through the sky, we left Renesmee, still sleeping, in the house with Jacob to look for Alice and Jasper.

"She's never taken so long before," Edward said.

I was still stronger than the rest of my family, and I used that strength to push myself forward. I overtook Esme in a few bounds, and Rosalie in just a few strides more. I raced through the thick forest until I was right behind Edward and Carlisle.

"Would they have been able to surprise her?" Carlisle asked, his voice as even as if he were standing motionless rather than running at full speed.

"I don't see how," Edward said. "But Aro knows her better than anyone else. Better than I do."

"Could this be a trap?" Emmett called from behind us.

"Maybe," Edward said. "There's no scent but Alice and Jasper. Where were they going?"

Alice and Jasper's trail was curling into a wide arc; it stretched first east of the house, but headed north on the other side of the river, and then back west again after a few miles. We recrossed the river, all six jumping within a second of each other. Edward ran in the lead, his concentration total.

"Did you catch that scent?" Esme called ahead a few moments after we'd leaped the river for the second time. She was the farthest back, on the far left edge of our hunting party. She gestured to the southeast.

"Keep to the main trail - we're almost to the Quileute border," Edward ordered tersely. "Stay together. See if they turned north or south."

I could smell the hunt of wolf in the breeze blowing from the east. Edward and Carlisle slowed a little out of habit, and I could see their heads sweep from side to side, waiting for the trail to turn.

Then the smell was suddenly stronger, and Edward's head snapped up. He came to a sudden stop. The rest of us froze, too.

"Sam?" Edward asked in a flat voice. "What is this?"

Sam came through the trees a few hundred yards away, walking quickly toward us in his human form, flanked by two big wolves - Paul and Jared. It took Sam a while to reach us; his human pace made me impatient. I didn't want time to think about what was happening. I wanted to be in motion, to be doing something. I wanted to have my arms around Alice, to know beyond a doubt that she was safe.

I watched as Edward's face go absolutely white as he read what Sam was thinking. Sam ignored him, looking straight at Carlisle as he stopped walking and began to speak.

"Right after midnight, Alice and Jasper came to this place and asked for permission to cross our land to the ocean. I granted them that and escorted them to the coast myself. They went immediately into the water and did not return. As we journeyed, Alice told me it was of the utmost importance that I say nothing to Jacob about seeing her until I spoke to you. I was to wait here for you to come looking for her and then give you this note. SHe told me to obey her as if all our lives depended on it."

Sam's face was grim as he held out a folded sheet of paper, printed all over a small black text. It was a page out of a book; my sharp eyes read the printed words as Carlisle unfolded it to see the other side. The side facing me was the copyright page from _The Merchant of Venice_. A hint of my own scent blew off of it as Carlisle shook the paper flat. I realized it was a page torn from one of my books. I'd brought a few things from Charlie's house to the cottage; a few sets of normal clothes, all the letters from my mother, and my favorite books. My tattered collection of Shakespeare paperbacks had been on the bookshelf in the cottage's little living room yesterday morning...

"Alice has decided to leave us," Carlisle whispered.

"What?" Rosalie cried.

Carlisle turned the page around so that we all could read.

_Don't look for us. There isn't time to waste._

_Remember: Tanya, Siobhan, Amun, Alistair,_

_all the nomads you can find. We'll seek out_

_Peter and Charlotte on our way. We're so sorry_

_that we have to leave you this way, with no_

_goodbyes or explanations. It's the only way for us._

_We love you._

We stood frozen again, the silence total but for the sound of the wolves' heartbeats, their breathing. Their thoughts must have been loud, too. Edward was first to move again, speaking in response to what he heard in Sam's head.

"Yes, things are that dangerous."

"Enough that you would abandon your family?" Sam asked out loud, censure in his time. It was clear that he had not read the note before giving it to Carlisle. He was upset now, looking as if he regretted listening to Alice.

Edward's expression was stiff - to Sam it probably looked angry or arrogant, but I could see the shape of pain in the hard planes of his face.

"We don't know what she saw," Edward said. "Alice is neither unfeeling nor a coward. She just has more information than we do."

"_We_ would not-," Sam began.

"You are bound differently than we are," Edward snapped. "_We_ each still have our free will."

Sam's chin jerked up, and his eyes looked suddenly flat black.

"But you should heed the warning," Edward went on. "This is not something you want to involve yourselves in. You can still avoid what Alice saw."

Sam smiled grimly. "_We_ don't run away." Behind him, Paul snorted.

"Don't get your family slaughtered for pride," Carlisle interjected quietly.

Sam looked at Carlisle with a softer expression. "As Edward pointed out, we don't have the same kind of freedom that you have. Renesmee is as much a part of our family now as she is yours. Jacob cannot abandon her, and we cannot abandon him." His eyes flickered to Alice's note, and his lips pressed into a thin line.

"You don't know her," Edward said.

"Do you?" Sam asked bluntly.

Carlisle put a hand on Edward's shoulder. "We have much to do, son. Whatever Alice's decision, we would be foolish not to follow her advice now. Let's go home and get to work."

Edward nodded, his face still rigid with pain. Behind me, I could hear Esme's quiet, tearless sobs.

"Thank you, Sam," Carlisle said.

"I'm sorry," Sam answered. "We shouldn't have let her through."

"No, you did the right thing," Carlisle told him. "Alice is free to do what she will. I wouldn't deny her that liberty."

I'd always thought of the Cullens as a whole, an indivisible unit. Suddenly, I remember that if had not always been so. Carlisle had created Edward, Esme, Rosalie and Emmett; Edward had created me. We were physically linked by blood and venom. I never thought of Alice and Jasper as separate - as adopted into the family. But in truth, Alice _had_adopted the Cullens. She had shown up with her unconnected past, bringing Jasper with his, and fit herself into the family that was already there. Both she and Jasper had known another life outside the Cullen family. Had she really chosen to lead another new life after she'd seen that life with the Cullens was over?

We were doomed, then, weren't we? There was no hope at all. Not one ray, one flicker that might have convinced Alice she had a chance at our side.

"_I'm_ not going down without a fight," Emmett snarled low under his breath. "Alice told us what to do. Let's get it done."

The others nodded with determined expressions, and I realized that they were banking on whatever chance Alice had given us. That they were not going to give in to hopelessness and wait to die.

Yes, we would fight, and we would involve others to fight with us for Renesmee. The other vampire covens, the wolves, would help us fight, and we all would die.

We ran automatically now, not hte same panicked hurry as before. As we neared the river, Esme's head lifted.

"There was that other trail. It was fresh."

She nodded forward, toward where she had called Edward's attention on the way here. While we were racing to find Alice.

"It has to be from earlier in the day. It was just Alice, without Jasper," Edward said lifelessly.

Esme's face puckered, and she nodded.

I drifted to the right, falling a little behind. I was sure Edward was right, but at the same time... After all, how had Alice's note ended up on a page from my book?

"Bella?" Edward asked in an emotionless voice as I hesitated.

"I want to follow the trail," I told him, smelling the light scent of Alice that led away from her earlier flight path. I was new to this, but it smelled exactly the same to me, just minus the scent of Jasper.

Edward's golden eyes were empty. "It probably just leads back to the house."

"Then I'll meet you there."

At first I thought he would let me go alone, but then, as I moved a few steps away, his blank eyes flickered to life.

"I'll come with you," he said quietly. "We'll meet you at home, Carlisle."

Carlisle nodded, and the others left. I waited until they were out of sight, and then I looked at Edward questioningly.

"I couldn't let you walk away from me," he explained in a low voice. "It hurt just to imagine it."

I understood without more explanation than that. I thought of being divided from him now and realized I would have felt he same pain, no matter how short the separation.

There was little time left to be together.

I held my hand out to him, and he took it.

"Let's hurry," he said. "Renesmee will be awake."

I nodded, and we were running again.

It was probably a silly thing, to waste the time away from Renesmee just for curiosity's sake. But the note bothered me. Alice could have carved the note into a boulder or a tree trunk if she lacked writing utensils. She could have stolen a pad of Post-its from any of the houses by the highway. Why my book? When did she get it?

The trail led back to cottage by a circuitous route that stayed far clear of the Cullens' house and the wolves in the nearby woods. Edward's brows tightened in confusion as it became obvious where the trail led.

We were almost to the cottage now, and I felt uneasy. I was glad to have Edward's hand in mine, but I also felt as if I should be here alone. Tearing out the page and carrying it back to Jasper was such an odd thing for Alice to do. It felt like there was a message in her action - one I didn't understand. But it was my book, so the message _must_ be for me.

"Give me just a minute," I said, pulling my hand free as we got to the door.

His forehead creased. "Bella?"

"Please? Thirty seconds."

I didn't wait for him to answer. I darted through the door, pulling it shut behind me. I went straight to the bookshelf. Alice's scent was fresh - less than a day old. A fire that I had not set burned low but hot in the fireplace. I yanked _The Merchant of Venice_ off the shelf and flipped it open to the title page.

There, next to the feathered edge left by the torn page, under the title was a note.

_Destroy this._

Below that was a name and an address in Seattle.

When Edward came through the door only thirteen seconds rather than thirty, I was watching the book burn.

"What's going on, Bella?"

"She was here. She ripped a page out of my book to write her note on."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

"Why are you burning it?"

"I-I-" I frowned, letting all my frustration and pain show on my face. I did not know what Alice was trying to tell me, only that she'd to great lengths to keep it from anyone but me. the one person whose mind Edward could not read. So she must want to keep him in the dark, and it was probably for a good reason. "It seemed appropriate."

I stared into the flames. I was the only person in the world who could lie to Edward. Was that what Alice wanted from me? Her last request?

"When we were on the plane to Italy," I whispered - this was not a lie, except perhaps in context - "on our way to rescue you... she lied to Jasper so that he wouldn't come after us. She knew that if he faced the Volturi, he would die. She was willing to die herself rather than put him in danger. Willing for me to die, too. Willing for you to die."

Edward didn't answer.

"She has her priorities," I said. It made my still heart ache to realize that my explanation did not feel like a lie in any way.

"I don't believe it," Edward said. He didn't say it like he was arguing with me - he said it like he was arguing with himself. "Maybe it was just Jasper in danger. Her plan would work for hte rest of us, but he'd be lost if he stayed. Maybe..."

"She could have told us that. Sent him away."

"But would Jasper have gone? Maybe she's lying to him again."

"Maybe," I pretended to agree. "We should go home. There's no time."

Edward took my hand, and we ran back to the house.

Carlisle and the others had not been idle in our absence. We'd been separated from them for all of five minutes, and they were already prepared to leave. In the corner, Sarox, Marlene, Max and PJ were sitting comfortably on the sofa. Jacob had Renesmee in his lap, both of them watching us with wide eyes.

Rosalie had traded her silk wrap dress for a sturdy-looking pair of jeans, running shoes, and a button-down shirt made of the thick wave that backpackers used for long trips. Esme was dressed similarly. There was a globe on the coffee table, but they were done looking at us, just waiting for us.

The atmosphere was more positive now than before; it felt good to them to be in action. Their hopes were pinned on Alice's instructions.

I looked at the globe and wondered where we were headed first.

"We're to stay here?" Edward asked, looking at Carlisle. He didn't sound happy.

"Alice said that we would have to show people Renesmee, and we would have to be careful about it," Carlisle said. "We'll send whomever we can find back here to you - Edward, you'll be the best at fielding that particular minefield."

Edward gave one sharp nod, still not happy. "There's a lot of ground to cover."

"We're splitting up," Emmett answered. "Rose and I are hunting for nomads."

"You'll have your hands full here," Carlisle said. "Tanya's family will be here in the morning, and they have no idea why. First, you have to persuade them not to react the way Irina did. Second, you've got to find out what Alice meant about Eleazar. Then, after all that, will they stay to witness for us? It will start again as the others come - if we can persuade anyone to come in the first place." Carlisle sighed. "Your job may well be the hardest. We'll be back to help as soon as we can."

Carlisle put his hand on Edward's shoulder for a second and then kissed my forehead. Esme hugged us both, and Emmett punched us both on the arm. Rosalie forced a hard smile for Edward and me, blew a kiss to Renesmee and then gave Jacob and the others a parting grimace. Marlene returned with a weak grin.

"Good luck," Edward told them.

"And to you," Carlisle said. "We'll all need it."

I watched them leave, wishing I could feel whatever hope bolstered them, and wishing I could be alone with the computer for just a few seconds. I had to figure out who this J. Jenks person was and why Alice had gone to such lengths to give his name only to me.

Renesmee twisted in Jacob's arms to touch his cheek.

"I don't know if Carlisle's friends will come. I hope so. Sounds like we're a little outnumbered right now," Jacob murmured to Renesmee. The others turned to them.

So she knew. Renesmee already understood only too clearly what was going on. The whole imprinted-werewolf-gives-the-object-of-his-imprinting-whatever-she-wants thing was getting old pretty fast. Wasn't shielding her more important than answering her questions?

I looked carefully at her face. She did not look frightened, only anxious and very serious as she conversed with Jacob in her silent way.

"No, we can't help, we've got to stay here," he went on. "They are coming to see _you_, not the scenery."

Renesmee frowned at him.

"No, I don't have to go anywhere," he said. Then he looked at Edward, his face stunned by realization that he might be wrong. "Do I?"

The kids looked at Edward. He hesitated.

"Spit it out," Jacob said, his voice raw with tension. He was right at his breaking point, just like the rest of us.

"The vampires who are coming to help us are not the same as we are," Edward said. "Tanya's family is the only one besides ours with a reverence for human life, and even they don't think much of werewolves. I think it might be safer-"

"I can take care of myself," Jacob interrupted.

"Safer for Renesmee," Edward continued, "if the choice to believe our story about her is not tainted by an association with werewolves."

"You mean, they would turn on you because of your alliance with the wolves?" Sarox asked.

Edward looked at him.

"I think they would mostly be tolerant under normal circumstances."

He turned back to Jacob.

"But you need to understand - accepting Nessie will not be a simple thing for any of them. Why make it even the slightest bit harder?"

Carlisle had explained the laws about immortal children to Jacob last night. Sarox, Marlene, Max, and PJ were present too. "The immortal children were really that bad?" PJ asked.

Edward turned to them again. "You can't imagine the depth of the scars they've left in the collective vampire psyche."

"Edward..." It was still odd to hear Jacob use Edward's name without bitterness.

"I know, Jake. I know how hard it is to be away from her. We'll play it by ear - see how they react to her. In any case, Nessie is going to have to be incognito off and on in the next few weeks. She'll need to stay at the cottage until the right moment for us to introduce her. As long as you keep a safe distance from the main house..."

"I can do that. Company in the morning, huh?"

"Yes. the closest of our friends. In this particular case, it's probably better if we get things out in the open as soon as possible. You can stay here. Tanya knows about you. She's even met Seth."

"Right."

"You should tell Sam what's going on. There might be strangers in the woods soon."

"Good point. Though I owe him some silence after last night."

"Listening to Alice is usually the right thing."

Jacob's teeth gritted together, and I could see that he shared Sam's feelings about what Alice and Jasper had done. Marlene gripped a hand on her chest and Sarox comforted her, PJ and Max looked at Renesmee in anxiety and silence.

While they were talking, I wandered toward the back windows, trying to look distracted and anxious. Not a difficult thing to do. I leaned my head against the wall that curved away from the living room toward the dining room, right next to one of the computer desks. I ran my fingers against the keys while staring into the forest, trying to make it look like an absentminded thing. I didn't think anyone was paying particular attention to me, but I didn't turn to make sure. The monitor glowered to life. I stroked my fingers across the keys again. then I drummed them very quietly on the wooden desktop, just to make it seem random. Another stroke across the keys.

I scanned the screen in my peripheral vision.

No J. Jenks, but there was a Jason Jenks. A lawyer. I brushed the keyboard, trying to keep a rhythm, like the preoccupied stroking of a cat you'l all but forgotten on your lap. Jason Jenks had a fancy website for his firm, but the address on the homepage was wrong. In Seattle, but in a different zip code. I noted the phone number and then stroked the keyboard in rhythm. This time I searched the address, but nothing at all came up, as if the address didn't exist. I wanted to look at a map, but I decided I was pushing my luck. One more brush, to delete the history...

I continued staring out the window and brushed the wood a few minutes. I heard light footsteps crossing to me, and I turned with what I hoped was the same expression as before.

Renesmee reached for me, and I held my arms open. She launched herself into them, smelling strongly of werewolf, and nestled her head against my neck.

I didn't know if I could stand this. As much as I feared for my life, for Edward's, for the rest of my family's, it was not the same as the gut-wrenching terror I felt for my daughter. There had to be a way to save her, even if that was the only thing I could do. She was the one thing I simply _had_ to save.

Would Alice have known how I would feel?

Renesmee's hand touched my cheek lightly.

She showed me my own face, Edward's, Jacob's, Rosalie's, Esme's, Carlisle's, Alice's, Jasper's, flipping through all our family's faces faster and faster. Seth and Leah. Charlie, Sue, and Billy. Sarox, Marlene, Max and PJ. Over and over again. Worrying like the rest of us were. She was only worrying, though. Jake had kept the worst from her as far as I could tell. The part about how we had no hope, how we all were going to die in a month's time.

She settled on Alice's face, longing and confused. Where was Alice?

"I don't know," I whispered. "But she Alice. She doing the right thing, like always."

The right thing for Alice, anyway. I hated thinking of her that way, but how else could the situation be understood?

Renesmee sighed, and the longing intensified.

"I miss her, too."

I felt my face working, trying to find the expression that went with the grief inside. My eyes felt strange and dry; they blinked against the uncomfortable feeling. I bit my lip. When I took my next breath, the air hitched in my throat, like I was choking on it.

Renesmee pulled back to look at me, and I saw my mirrored in her thoughts and in her eyes. I looked like Esme had this morning.

So this was what it felt like to cry.

Renesmee's eyes glistened wetly as she watched my face. She stroked my face, showing me nothing, just trying to soothe me.

I'd never thought to see the mother-daughter bond reversed between us, the way it had always been for Renée and me. But I hadn't had a very clear view of the future.

A tear welled up on the edge of Renesmee's eye. I wiped it away with a kiss. She touched her eye in amazement and then looked at the wetness on her fingertip.

"Don't cry." I told her. "It's going to be okay. You're going to be fine. I will find you a way through this."

If there was nothing else I could do, I would still save my Renesmee. I was more positive than ever that this was what Alice would give me. She would know. She would have left me a way.


	7. Chapter 6: Sarox: Live or Die

SAROX

We stayed at the Cullens' house till dusk. Jacob spent most of his time playing with Nessie, Marlene and PJ in the front porch. They were trying to make her forget what she'd heard today. Edward and Bella watched from the large window. I watched from the rock stairs as they played together. Even though I knew their problems did not involve me or my friends, anxiety still ached my heart.

Marlene turned to me when Renesmee had her attention on the others. I saw the sympathy behind her smile.

I looked at Nessie again. And I saw an innocent, lovely girl. She may be half-vampire, but completely harmless. I realized why her family would want to protect her. I wanted to protect her, too.

"Sarox! Marlene! Max! PJ!" Edward called.

I turned my head around and saw him and Bella in the hallway.

"Can you come in here, please?" he asked.

I walked into the front hall to meet them. There were sounds of footsteps coming up behind me. It took a few seconds before Marlene, Max and PJ were closely behind me.

"We would like to speak with you in private, if it's okay," Edward said.

"Sure," I answered.

He gestured to the woods behind the windows.

Clearly they wanted to speak with us alone. Away from Renesmee while Jacob was playing with her, distracting her perhaps.

We followed them through the back door, a few miles into the rainy forest. Once they stopped, I knew we were out of their hearing range.

Edward looked at us for several seconds before he finally said something.

"I think it's better if you leave."

"What? Why?" I asked.

"Don't misunderstand," he explained, "this isn't something we would want to involve you with. The Volturi is highly powerful and dangerous. As long as you're here, you're in grave danger. We're already risking our friends' lives by asking them to witness for us, but we can't let you get involved as well."

"But..." Marlene murmured.

She wanted to help, and so did I.

"I know," Edward said. "If the situation were different..."

His voice turned empty. The burden was too great for either one of them. I looked into Bella's crimson eyes and saw the same despair emitted from them. They did not want us to be in danger because of them.

Everyone frowned.

"We appreciate your desire to help," Bella talked for the first time since we went into the forest. "But we can't guarantee there's a chance for us to survive. If the Volturi doesn't listen to us, we'll all be dead within seconds."

"What?" Max asked frustrated. "How dangerous is the Volturi anyway? What is it about them that makes them so scary?"

"The Volturi is powerful, because they collect vampires with gifts that make them frightening," Edward answered. "Their most offensive weapons are Jane and Alec. They could kill you before you get your hands on them. And they pay neither respect nor mercy to human life. We are all bound to obey the laws to avoid their slaughter."

"Vampires have laws?" PJ wondered.

"But can't you just run or something?" I asked.

Bella shook her head.

"They have a tracker; Demetri. He can track anyone in the world, and no one will ever be able to escape."

She turned up to look at Edward. Their eyes didn't meet.

"Trust me," he said. "You should leave this world while you still have time. I've read your minds: the four of you have an important mission to finish. You must survive."

I was stunned. Edward had already learned about our task?

"Yes," he answered the question in my mind. "I've seen the nobility in it. You shouldn't be involved with our problem. Not if it threatens your lives and keeps you from fulfilling your task. You should leave right now, while there's still time."

"Goodbye," he said in a flat voice.

Then he wrapped his arm around Bella's waist and they walked past us, back to the house. Neither one of us followed.

I looked to Marlene, then Max, and then PJ. They all had the same frown as mine.

* * *

We walked for about a half-hour in the dank woods, looking for a safe spot for Max to transport us back to the Gummi Ship. By the time I looked up to the sky, the sun had already disappeared behind the mountains. As the dark sky covered the world, countless radiant stars appeared over us.

Every star was a distant radiance of one world. Some of them we already visited and provided protection. Most of them were defenseless, waiting for us to visit and help them find their guardians. They needed my help. I thought of the Heartless, their strength was unparalleled; there were so many times that the force brought me face-to-face with death, only for me to escape it in the end. But what Edward said bothered me. _They could kill you before you get your hands on them,_ he said. Those words repeated in my mind and made me halt. I needed to stay alive, that was why Max and PJ left their home world. They were assigned by King Mickey to protect me and help me out in times of need. Marlene decided to follow me because she did not want to be apart from me.

I turned to my comrades. Max and PJ's faces wore determination. Marlene gave me a large grin, as though she was willing to go if that was what I wanted.

Then I remembered. We had faced death more than we could count, and yet here we were, standing beside each other. If helping the worlds was our job, then we weren't going to back out because of life threatening danger. We were going to help, no matter the odds.

I took a deep breath.

"Guys, I'm going back," I said. "I've decided to help them out."

Max and PJ's faces turned to happy looks.

"I was waiting for you to say that," Max confirmed. "If helping is what we're gonna do, then we're not gonna run."

Marlene took my hand into hers and gripped it tightly. Her grin enlarged, and confidence washed over me.

PJ faced me with a kind smile. "Then let's do what we can for them. If they need a show of witnesses, then I'm sure we can find some of our friends to help, too."

"I thought we're not supposed to meddle with the world order too much," Max said. There was no reluctance in his words, just confidence and determination.

"Surely we can find just a little outside help. As long as we don't involve too many people in this," PJ said.

They started thinking. Of what people to help witness, I presumed.

"We can try talking to His Majesty," Max suggested. "I'm sure he'll send someone to help us out. My dad, for instance."

"Or maybe Master Donald," PJ added.

"My parents can help too," I said as soon as they appeared in my mind.

"Maybe some of the Princesses," Marlene suggested.

I realized what she meant by 'princesses': the Princesses of Heart. It made sense that she thought of them, because she was one as well. One of the seven maidens whose hearts were free of darkness, unlike all other beings in the universe. Even my heart contained light and darkness, something that gave it existence.

Max and PJ frowned at the idea. It was a bad idea to involve the princesses. They were each scattered in different worlds. Involving them would be too much meddling to the cosmos.

"Surely we can try to think of them," I said.

Max sighed, then nodded in agreement. PJ nodded, too.

"Alrighty, then," Max said.

He thought for a moment.

"I'm going back to Disney Castle," he finally said after several minutes. "The more of us stay behind the better. I'll see you soon."

Max started running away from us.

"Be careful, Max!" Marlene called.

He returned with a wave of arm.

After a few minutes, a radiant beam of light came straight down from the sky and landed a hundred yards away from us. When it disappeared, Max' picture appeared in my head. It felt strange to miss him so quickly.

Marlene's hand shook lightly in mine. I turned my head to look at her. Her smile was dazzling, radiant.

Another minute passed, PJ's magic staff lit like a torch. And then we darted back to the Cullen house. As soon as I was pretty sure we were close, I started reaching out to Edward with my thoughts.

_"Edward! I'm sure you can hear me, so I'm going to be straight with you,"_ I thought. _"We have decided to stay and help. You can be as mad at us as you want, but we can't leave you while you're in so much trouble. We're traveling to other worlds to help, so this is part of our job, too."_

We found our way out from the dark forest and back to house. Edward was already a few yards away, waiting for us. He was having a weak smile on his face.

"Thank you," he said kindly.

We smiled back.


	8. Chapter 7: Sarox: Where It All Began

SAROX

We spent the night at Emily's house after Edward decided we should keep a distance from the main house until the Denali Coven arrived.

They wanted to keep our scents as faint as possible to make it easier for them to explain the situation to them, and about Nessie's existence.

Edward had told us that the immortal children had impacted the Denali sisters the most. The mother of Tanya, Kate, and Irina created an immortal child. When the Volturi realized that they could not be controlled or tamed, they hunted down every last one of the children and killed those who knew of their existence. The sisters lost their mother that way, the Volturi spared their lives because they were kept in the dark about the immortal child's existence.

But they were the closest the Cullens knew, so they had to be told first. So they needed the situation as light as possible to transect the news to them. And our scents there would only make it harder.

We slept through the night in Emily's living room. She had given us blankets and sleeping bags that the Quileute wolves sometimes used to make a camping facade to sleep in the mountains with their ignorant parents thinking that they were going camping.

The night was ice-cold that the sleeping bags and blankets went quite useful when we slept. Surely, we would have found another way to keep us warm.

As soon as the sun came up, I felt anxious. I wanted to be present to see how it turned out with the Denalis.

"I'm going to see how they're doing," I told Marlene and PJ when they woke up.

They were meeting their friends in the house. I didn't have to be inside the house. It was constructed with glass all over, so it wouldn't be much problem to see through the windows. I will be waiting outside, watching their movements, and the shift of atmosphere to read their situation. That would make matters easier too, as long as I wasn't in the house with them.

I knew my scent was still there, but why make the situation harder?

I folded my sleeping bag and placed it on the big round dining table. Within very little time, I used the first pen and paper I could find in the living room to write a note for Emily and Sam. It was impolite enough to leave without their consent, the least I could do was leave a note.

_Emily, Sam,_

_I'm sorry to leave like this._

_But I have to go check on the Cullens._

_I'll be back soon._

_Thank you so much for your kindness._

_Sarox_

I walked toward the front door.

"Wait," Marlene called.

My legs froze in place. I turned my head around to see Marlene quickly folding her blanket and place it on top of my sleeping bag. As soon as she was done, she walked quickly to my side. "Let's go together."

I smiled to her. Then, I shifted my eyes to PJ.

"PJ, why don't you stay behind," I told him. "It's better if we're fewer. You can explain things to Emily and Sam."

He returned a nod. And we walked into the woods.

We did not hurry.

While we walked in the forest, I realized it had been a little while since I spent time with Marlene.

* * *

I remembered back on Destiny Islands, when I was a student, when I was still just a kid. And Marlene was just my classmate. Back when everything was easier. All I ever had to think about was how Coach Marl'n tortured us students with impossible training and assignments, and then after school, I would walk Marlene home and talk to her about everything. Yes, this was the beginning of my story. The first chapter of a person living a regular life, inferior to most people but satisfied with what life offered. And then the next chapter began; my home world was invaded by a race of monsters called 'Heartless'. My parents knew exactly what they were, and they knew how to defeat them. While they were busy fighting the Heartless, I witnessed the corruption of Marlene's house.

"Marlene!" I called, my voice in panic.

I started running across the houses when a group of Heartless suddenly thwarted me. They made a jump on me. I did not give in. I was fighting my way through. They were more powerful than I could fight off, but I did not want to give up. Even with little strength, I would fight my way through.

And then I was surrounded by a strong light in my face, blinding me. The weight on my body lifted as the dark creatures flew back as though they had been shocked.

_Use your power, use the light._

_It will guide you through the darkness._

_Your heart is your weapon._

As soon as the light disappeared, I felt something solid and hard in my hand. I opened my eyes... and there it was. A huge, gold and silver Key appeared in my hand. The hilt was made of gold, connected by a silver keychain with the symbol of a funny mouse on the end of it. The size of the Key was half the length of my body. I didn't know what it was, I was still mystified by this sudden object.

A wave of unidentified power went from my hand to the rest of my body. It made me strong, confident. I realized I was gonna fight my way through. The Heartless surrounded me again. But I launched at them with my new weapon, and before I knew it, their bodies vanished in a puff of black smoke as soon as my weapon touched them. Hearts flew out as the Heartless disappeared and vanished to God knows where they went.

By the time I came to Marlene's house, her parents were cornered by the Heartless and I went to their rescue.

"Where's Marlene?" I asked as soon as I was sure the Heartless were gone.

"They took her," Dyne, her father, said. "We were blocked, there was nothing we could do to stop them."

"Do you know where they took her?" I asked.

My voice was panic.

He pointed to the small island where my parents used to take me to when I was little. Why did they take her there? It wasn't like there was anything special about that island. Or was there?

I shoved the question to the back of my head and started running to the docks. Another group of Heartless appeared in front of me and blocked my path. I knew I needed to fight, but there was no time. The longer I fought, the more dangerous Marlene's life gets.

One of the Heartless jumped up in the air, about to attack me. A big human figure jumped past me and knocked the dark monster away with a single hand movement. As soon as it hit the ground, it swiped at the other Heartless and destroyed the rest. It took me a moment to realize that the figure was really my father. In his hand held the exact duplicate of my weapon, a giant Key.

"I see you got the Keyblade from me," he said without looking at me.

"Wha... This?" I said in a confused tone.

I looked down on my Keyblade.

"It's a very special weapon. It doesn't just choose anybody to be its master."

Another group of Heartless appeared in front of us.

"I'll handle these punks," he said. "You go and save Marlene, son."

"But..."

I didn't want to leave my dad alone to fight the monsters.

"Don't worry, your old man can take care of himself. Now go!"

"Sora!" I heard my mother call from behind.

She ran past me to his dad and then flipped her hand. A burst of light appeared in her hand and formed a Keyblade. The appearance was different, but it was shaped similar, so I had no trouble recognizing the weapon.

I was dazed. My parents had Keyblades? How come I was never told of this?

I realized this was what they kept from me. They always told me stories about their adventures, but always kept a big part of it to themselves.

"Sarox, your Dad and I will take care of the Heartless here," Kairi, my mother, assured me. "Just go to the little island and find Marlene. She's in grave danger."

I nodded, not knowing where my obedience came from. I ran past them and headed toward the docks, where I found a wooden boat and sailed directly to the small island.

The dark sky made the little island difficult for me to see clearly, but as soon as I sailed close enough, I saw Marlene on an even smaller island that could only be reached by crossing a wooden bridge connected to the small isle.

There wasn't time to cross the bridge, though. She was cornered by several Heartless, blocking her path from escape. I hurriedly sailed to the little islet. Then with as much strength as I could focus on my feet, I pressed my legs from the side of the boat jumped up to the side of the island.

"Marlene!"

My voice echoed to her and the monsters. This would be a difficult fight, I knew it. There were more Heartless in front of them than the ones I faced on the bigger island. I launched toward them without thinking, and before I knew it, I managed to destroy four of them and ran to Marlene.

"Are you okay?" I asked her.

"Yeah," she answered. The fear in her chest vanished, that was as far as I could tell from her smile.

The remaining Heartless readied to tackle us. I launched myself in front of Marlene to protect her if they came toward us.

_"Thunder!"_

A sudden lightning bolt appeared five feet above one of the Heartless and struck with a powerful force, and destroyed the monster in the blink of an eye. Some of them got knocked aback by the impact.

I shifted my eyes to different directions to look for the source that created the lightning bolt. Ironically enough, my eyes found nothing. My ears did. A strong sound of rocket blasts and machine appeared above us. When I looked up, the source was a giant flying vehicle of red and yellow. A figure stood on top of the flying craft. His face was the appearance of an overweight black dog, but the rest of his body was no different than a human. I didn't know who "he" was then.

Next to the creature was a half-round glass covering half the ship. Inside was another dog-faced figure, I presumed "he" was the pilot.

The fat dog jumped ship and landed in front of me, standing in between me and the Heartless.

"Max!" he called up. "I'm gonna take these out. You land as soon as you can!"

Max held a thumb up, then drove the ship up into the sky, disappearing behind the black clouds. As soon as his friend was gone, PJ turned his attention to Marlene and me.

"Hey, my name is PJ," he introduced himself. "Magician apprentice."

The remained Heartless launched toward the three of us. We managed to fight them off with a combination of enchanting fireballs and weapon. It did not take long before Max joined us.

He appeared next to us in a beam of light. I was still unfamiliar with their space craft and didn't know they could disembark with a beaming system.

"Let's get them," he said. Then drew out his knight shield.

While they confronted the monsters, I was mostly in the back, guarding Marlene from danger.

We defeated the Heartless within minutes. As soon as we were sure we were safe, they introduced themselves officially. Max; a trainee candidate of the Royal Guard, and PJ; a magician apprentice. They told me about the Heartless and the source of their existence - the darkness within people's hearts. After that, they shifted their attention to my Keyblade. As it turned out, they knew about it too, and that was why they were sent here. To find me - the Keyblade's chosen one.

But our little conversation was interrupted by my parents, whom came to us via the wooden bridge.

"Are you alright, Sarox?" mom asked.

"Yes, Mom," I answered. The amazement was still in my system.

Dad looked at the two strangers, curiosity in his eyes.

"Did the King send you here?" he asked.

"You know His Majesty?" Max asked in shock.

He sighed.

"I guess I got the answer."

He knew? What did he know? More questions appeared in my mind.

"He has sent us here to find the next bearer of the Keyblade," PJ explained.

Everyone flickered to the Keyblade in my hand. The mysterious weapon that changed my life.

But before we could go any further, another group of Heartless appeared.

"And here I thought they would stop coming," Dad said.

The four of us readied to battle together.

"Wait," I heard Marlene say. "Let me try."

What? What did she mean? Did she want to get herself killed?

Before any of us could ask her that, she walked past us. Standing only inches away from the dangerous Heartless. I didn't want to stay behind and let her get herself killed. I wanted to protect her. I ran forward, only to be interrupted by a sudden burst of light emitted from her body.

She looked up to the sky as though she was calling for something.

"Give me the strength to fight," she said, her words were not directed to any of us. "Come to me, Marahute!"

The glow on her body shot a beam up in the air, stopped midway and formed a mysterious sphere. And then, something came to life as a set of large wings appeared from inside the sphere. As soon as the blinding light disappeared, I realized the wings came from a large golden eagle. It glared at Marlene, as if they were conversing in a silent way.

Then, it disappeared in a swirling beam of light and dived into Marlene's body. She made no resistance. And then the same set of golden wings appeared on her back.

Dazed by the new appearance, I glared at Marlene in a way I'd never had before, like I had fallen under her spell. My eyes would not turn away from her. Such beauty. Such elegance.

She was elegant beyond royal, divine beyond goddess.

With a single wave of hand gesture, she blew the Heartless off the mini island with a gust of wind. "Whoa," my Dad, Max and PJ murmured as they expressed my amazement.

After we stopped the Heartless from taking Marlene and invading our world, we brought Max and PJ back to our home. As it turned out, I was the newest chosen person for the Keyblade. And King Mickey had sent them to take me to back to their castle to meet him, because I needed to know more about my power. Dad wanted to come with me, but Max told him that he needed to stay behind to protect Destiny Islands.

Marlene decided to come with me. I tried to convince her to stay behind, but her persistance overwon me and the other boys.

"I can take care of myself," she said angrily, determined. "I'm not gonna let you go and face some sacred mission on your own. If anything, I'll fight alongside you. I'll help you fight your way through until we win."

My Mom, Kairi, showed impression to her bravery, and handed her her Keyblade. "Take this, it'll help you in times of need."

She accepted it with a large smile across her face.

The four of us arrived at the castle shortly after leaving the islands. The King - a mouse king, I might add - greeted us in a warming welcome with his Queen. Max and PJ took a step forward and bowed in front of the royals. I didn't know how to be polite, but I realized I couldn't just stand like a statue. So I took a step forward and bowed like PJ and Max, and then Marlene bowed, too.

"I-It's nice to make your acquaintance, Y-... Your Majesty," I stuttered.

"Ah, Sarox, the Keyblade's chosen one," the King answered. His voice reminded me of small children. Funny, and gentle. "You must really take after your father to inherit his weapon."

I was beyond shock now. My parents had more on their story that they shared with me. Befriending people in the appearances of dogs, ducks, and mice was surely just a part of it.

"You know my father?" I wondered.

"Yes, we've known each other for a long time."

I put my curiosity aside and refocused on the reason I was brought here. "Max and PJ said that you needed me to help."

He nodded. "Yes, you see, the Heartless, that is the monsters that attacked your island. There are more of them out there in other worlds. And they're causing great trouble. The Keyblade is their fear, their weakness. I sense that someone is controlling those Heartless to invade the worlds. And that is why we need you, Sarox. I want you to help protect the worlds."

My shoulders suddenly felt heavy, like they were hit a gigantic boulder.

"Me? What can I do?"

My voice trembled.

"Your Keyblade is the key to our survival. Like you, there are other Keyblade warriors out there. They can use the Keyblade to protect their worlds. But you see, they don't know anything about their potential and so their powers are locked deep in the shadows of their hearts. Your Keyblade can help them unlock those powers. If we could gather enough help from the other Keyblade warriors, then we might have a better chance to defeat whoever is making up this mess." His face turned serious. "Sarox, we could really use your help."

I gave it a thoguht for a few moments.

Why did I have to be the one?

I was already having questions that had no answers. Why did I have to become someone I didn't ask to become?

But I knew what I had to do. If the worlds out there were in danger, and I was the one to protect them, then I should do what I can. My home world almost got swallowed by the Heartless the other day. I wasn't going to let the other worlds, and the residents in them go through the same threat of losing what was dearest to them.

"Please tell me where to start," I said loudly and determined.

Something I said made him smile. "You sure are alot like your father." Then he turned serious again. "Max and PJ will be your assistants in battle."

Marlene suddenly took a step forth. "I want to go, too, Your Majesty."

I turned my head to face her. Obviously, she did not realize the danger we were going to face. I didn't know much myself, but even a single signal of potential danger, I would not let Marlene go anywhere near it.

"You can't go!" I shouted. "It's way too dangerous."

"I can take care of myself, you know," she replied, holding up the Keyblade my mother gave her. "And I'm not gonna wait for you to come home as long as you're out there facing danger either. If there's anything I can do at all, I wanna do it."

Flames escalated up to my throat, but I barely noticed. Her determined face made it all heavier to bear. She was willing to face danger for my sake, just like I would if our roles were reversed. I looked to the first option that came to mind to persuade her to let go.

"I won't be in trouble, I'll have _them_ with me," I pointed to Max and PJ. "They'll help me in my quest."

"You mean _our_ quest," Max corrected me: that irritated my nerves.

Before I could argue further, the King interrupted with his own words. "Welp, actually I believe the Princess' power will be of great help."

I wanted to argue, but something he said caught my attention now. "'The Princess'? Marlene's a Princess?"

Marlene and I glared at him in surprise. He nodded in response. "One of the only seven that have no darkness within their hearts, called the "Princesses of Heart". I believe the Heartless trying to take her heart before."

That surprised me even more. And I thought that I would be beyond surprise by now.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"If they're all captured, I'm afraid something terrible will happen," he explained. "And I believe if you have one of the Princesses with you, she'll be able to track the others down."

I realized that it was the only explanation I would get. I flickered my eyes to Marlene again - she had that same, gentle smile again. Clearly there was no point in arguing if a king was assigning her to me. Unwilling as I was, I could only nod my head lightly.

Her smile grew.

"Okay! I'll prepare you for your quest. Max! PJ! Would you take Sarox and Marlene to the dresser and give them suitable outfits for the trip, please? I'll wait for you in the Gummi Hangar when you're done."

"Yessir!" they straightened their backs and answered the King's order together. That felt childish.

We followed the dog boys to an enormous, white room where three older women in green, red and blue awaited. It made me feel awkward when I saw that their faces were human, unlike the rest of the castle. On our way, we noticed a line of walking broomsticks cleaning the castle, and that convinced me that no one would look any more human.

"Well, look who we have here," the red one said, cheerfully surprised. "It's Sora's legacy, Sarox! And a beautiful Princess of Heart!"

"Oh, if you're looking for something to wear, you've come to the right place," the blue one said.

The red lady approached in a strange floating way, and when she was close enough I looked over her back and saw a pair of fairy wings fluttering on her back. By now, I was really beyond shock.

"Um, Fauna," the red fairy turned to the green one. "Why don't you help this fine lady make a dress?"

The green fairy, Fauna, floated toward us. "I'd love to," she said and then grabbed Marlene's hand and began to pull her away from me. "This way, dear."

PJ and Max watched as the fairies measured our sizes to make suitable clothes.

"Merryweather, what do you think?" the red fairy asked as she examined my body length.

She examined the arm that the red fairy was measuring. Her forehead creased. "Well, that shouldn't be a problem."

Before they could examine my body further, a sparkling noise caught our attention. Marlene was in a silver dress with short sleeves and a pair of matching pink shoes. The dress suited her more than I would have thought if I'd known what she would be wearing. She looked exactly like a princess out of a fairytale, even with the ponytail that matched her face.

"That's a lovely dress!" the green fairy expressed cheerfully as she admired her work. Marlene was amazed by the dress, but she was also embarrassed by our admiration.

The other two were mesmerized as well. "Yes, she does look beyond beauty," the blue fairy said, admiring as well.

"Yes, she is," the red one agreed, then turned back to me. "Okay, let's work on this now."

They stopped examining me, and floated ten feet away. Their eyes focused on me.

"Let's try this."

The red fairy waved her wand, my clothes sparkled as it changed... into a weird samurai armor.

"Oh, where did that come from?" Merryweather shouted at the red fairy. "Here, try this," she waved her wand.

My samurai outfit changed into a big stuffed animal; a black cat mascot. I had to take off the mask to find out what I was wearing.

"Hey, where did this come from?" I snapped furiously at her.

She moaned as Fauna floated to their side.

"Why don't we try this?" Fauna suggested, and then waved her wand.

I was all against the idea of changing my outfit: I wanted to wear my old clothes rather than let the silly fairies play with my appearance. It was embarrassing. I could already hear PJ and Max chuckle behind me.

Before I could say anything, though, my clothes glowered.

_Oh no! What now?_ I thought to myself.

When the light faded, I found myself not in anything embarrassing, or repulsive, but in something impressive. My mascot head was gone: my torso was covered by a pure white shirt with blue wave patterns and a nightly black jacket; the long, loose pants were white as the shirt with silvery lines running from my waist down. The golden shoes were large and glittering. This mesmerizing outfit brought out a different character in me. It made me confident, strong, and courageous. I was absorbed by this new style of mine.

"Why, it's perfect," Merryweather analyzed.

"Yes, he does look very dashing," Fauna agreed.

"Now, Sarox. The garments you and Marlene wear are not ordinary outfits," the green fairy explained. "When you travel to certain worlds, you will need to change your appearances to fit into those worlds. And those clothes will help you change."

"And that's not all. Unlike Marlene, your garments have very special powers," the red fairy explained.

I looked away from my new clothes.

Curiosity and admiration was all over my head now. I wanted to know what my new clothes could do.

"What can they do?"

The blue fairy shook her head. "You only need to really concentrate to change into a new form and gain new powers."

I looked down on my clothes again, mesmerized. Not only were they pretty, but they were also special in more ways than one.

We thanked the fairies for the new clothes, and headed directly to the Gummi Hangar where the King, his Queen, and two more 'people' waited; one of them was a white duck in appearance of a magician; the other was a dog in a metal armor, looking almost identical to Max. I realized they were related somehow. The King and Queen faced us with smiling faces.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

We all nodded together.

Inside, I was worried of what we could encounter from then on, but I shook it off. There was no turning back, and I had to open myself up to face the dangers.

Max seemed to notice my worry and placed a hand on my shoulder to reassure me. Then, PJ placed another hand on my other shoulder. And then Marlene smiled at me with the same beautiful smile.

I realized I wasn't going to be alone in this. I had two new partners to help me, and Marlene would be with me even if I didn't want her to be. If we were to run into trouble, which I was sure we will, then we would solve it together. I wasn't going to fight alone; I had partners with me.

"Sarox," the King called my name. "This journey of yours will not be easy, but don't worry, your friends will help you. And remember, the Keyblade is connected to your heart. So you just need to follow your heart to do what's right," he told me, and then the Queen took over the conversation.

"I'll have him join you on your journey in order to chronicle your story."

She opened her palms and revealed a clothed cricket, holding a cane and a hat. He bowed as he introduced himself. "Hello! Name's Jiminy. Jiminy Cricket!"

That was when our journey began. The dog captain Goofy, who turned out to be Max' father, wished Max good luck before we departed on the Gummi Ship. Donald, the white duck, gave us a book of magic spells to help us learn the arts of magic. PJ was revealed to be his apprentice, and therefore was assigned with teaching me and Marlene the arts.

Up until now, I had encountered countless people, and visited more than one world. Despite the dangers we'd encountered, the journey had really been more amazing than I would have dreamed. Max, PJ, Marlene and I grew closer to each other while we journeyed across the universe; Max and I would often train in combat while PJ would teach me and Marlene the arts of magic. The worries that burdened my heart lifted as my strength improved on its own. It was the people that I interacted that relieved me from the burdens.

I began to trust the strength in my heart. Not because of the Keyblade, but because I felt the connections of those I met. And it made my heart strong.

* * *

I stopped flashing back through my memories as soon as Marlene and I were in the forest across the Cullen house. On the front porch rested an unfamiliar vehicle: and I realized that the Denali Coven had already arrived. I wondered how Bella and Edward had given the news to the vampires.

Jacob suddenly opened the door, his glance focused in our direction. He was looking at us, and we realized that we had been caught.

He flickered his arm to us. "Come on in!"

We stepped out from the forest and walked toward the door while Jacob held it open for us.

"How did it go?" I asked him as soon as we were at the door. His frowning expression told me that it did not go well. Or maybe they were just beginning.

Then, I heard a male voice. "Edward, you can't expect us to -"

"Tell me another explanation that fits, Eleazar," I heard Edward in another room.

Jacob led us into the room; and there they were. Four unfamiliar vampires; one male, three female. Edward was facing them. Bella had Renesmee in her arms.


	9. Chapter 8: Sarox: Persuation

SAROX

The vampires ignored us as though we did not exist. I figured they were still in the middle of hearing Edward and Bella explain about Nessie.

"You can feel the warmth of her body in the air," Edward told the male vampire." Blood runs in her veins, Eleazar. You can smell it."

"How?" a female vampire breathed.

"Bella is her biological mother," Edward told her. "She conceived, carried, and gave birth to Renesmee while she was still human. It nearly killed her. I was hard-pressed to get enough venom into her heart to save her."

"I've never heard of such a thing," Eleazar said. His shoulders were stiff, his expression cold.

"Physical relationships between vampires and humans are not common," Edward answered. I could hear a bit of dark humor in his tone now. "Human survivors of such trsys are even less common. Wouldn't you agree, cousins?"

Two female vampires scowled at him.

"Come now, Eleazar. Surely you can see the resemblance."

A dark-haired female vampire stepped around Eleazar, ignoring his half-articulated warning, and walked carefully to stand next to Bella and Renesmee. She leaned down slightly, carefully examining at Nessie's face.

"You seem have your mother's eyes," she said in a low, calm voice, "but your father's face." And then, she smiled at Nessie.

She returned a beautiful smile of her own. She touched Bella's face without looking away from the vampire, communing in her own way.

"Do you mind if Renesmee tells you about it herself?" Bella asked after a minute. "She has a gift for explaining things."

"Do you speak, little one?" the vampire asked, her smile unwavering.

"Yes," Nessie answered in her trilling high soprano. The other three vampires flinched at the sound of her voice.

I finally caught the idea of the chaos the immortal children had caused for them to act that way.

"But I can show you more than I can tell you," she continued. And then placed her little hand on the vampire's cheek.

She stiffened. The male vampire, Eleazar, immediately his hands on her shoulders as if to pull her away.

"Wait," she said breathlessly, her eyes locked on Nessie's.

Edward's face was intent, and I knew he was watching Nessie's story with his mind reading ability.

Jacob shifted his weight impatiently, as if he wanted to know what she was showing the vampire.

"What's Nessie showing her?" Jacob asked under his breath.

"Everything," Edward murmured. His eyes still focused on nothing.

Several minutes passed, and Nessie finally dropped her hand from the vampire's face and smiled winningly.

"She really is your daughter, isn't she?" the vampire asked in one breath. She switched her eyes from Nessie to Edward. "Such a vivid gift! It could only have come from a very gifted father."

"Do you believe what she showed you?" Edward asked, his expression intense.

"Without a doubt," she answered simply.

Eleazar's face was rigid with distress. "Carmen!"

_Carmen_ took his hands into her own and squeezed them. "Impossible as it seems, Edward has told you nothing but truth. Let the child show you."

She nudged Eleazar closer to Bella and Nessie and then nodded at her encouragingly. "Show him, _mi querida_."

Nessie grinned at Carmen's acceptance and touched lightly on Eleazar's forehead.

"_Ay caray_!" he shouted as soon as the first pictures flashed through his mind, and jerked away from her.

"What did she do to you?" another female vampire demanded as she came closer to them. A fourth vampire crept forward, too.

"She's just trying to show you her side of the story," Carmen told him in a soothing voice.

"Watch, please," Nessie said in a commanding tone. She was getting impatient. She stretched her hand out to Eleazar, and stopped only inches from his face, waiting.

Eleazar eyed her suspiciously, and then turned to Carmen for help. She nodded encouragingly. He took a deep breath and then leaned closer until his forehead met her hand again.

It took a few minutes before he reopened his eyes.

"Ah, I see," he sighed. Nessie smiled at him. He hesitated, but then smiled a slightly unwilling smile in response. I turned to Marlene. She smiled delightfully. This was heading to a good direction.

"Eleazar?" the first blond vampire asked.

"It's all true, Tanya. This is no immortal child. Come. See for yourself."

_Tanya_ and the other female vampire stepped closer to Bella and Nessie. Nessie touched their faces and projected her thoughts into their minds. As soon as she was done showing them her story, they were completely won over, just like Eleazar and Carmen.

Eleazar shot a strange glance at me. It made me feel somewhat uneasy.

Edward read our minds and explained. "He saw the Keyblade in Renesmee's mind. He'd only read about it in the books, so he's intrigued for meeting the first person to wield it."

I nodded. Yes, there were books telling the Keyblade in this world, I remembered. Carlisle showed us. They were written by Aro, the leader of the... wait, they were written by the leader of the Volturi. Carlisle only read the books when he was in Volterra, where they lived. He took one book with him when he left.

That must mean Eleazar had been with the Volturi, too.

"Yes, he was a member of the Volturi Guard," Edward answered my silent question after he heard it in my mind.

This was getting a bit annoying. He shot an amusing smile at me.

_Okay, now I really am annoyed,_ I thought at him angrily.

Bella and Jacob read my expression and smiled humorously, too.

"Thank you for listening," Edward said to the Denali vampires, interrupting the tension. Much to my ease.

"And now, if I may ask, who are these two mortals?" the unnamed silk blonde vampire asked, her eyes flickered to us.

Edward took a step closer to us, his hand waved toward us. "This is _Sarox_, and that is _Marlene_. They're here to help," he introduced us, and then shifted the introduction as I knew it. "This is Tanya - the leader of the Denali Coven, Kate, Eleazar, and his mate Carmen."

I nodded at the coven members, and Marlene flickered a polite smile at them.

"Nice to meet you," she said.

Tanya and _Kate_ grinned back. "Glad to make your acquaintance," Tanya responded.

Eleazar's eyes focused on me, his smile gentle and harmless. Carmen nodded politely, and then gazed back to Nessie.

"You said there is the _grave danger_," Tanya said, shifting back to the problem at hand. "Not directly from this child, obviously, but surely from the Volturi, then. How did they find out about her? When are they coming?"

I was surprised by her quick understanding. A few minutes of flashing pictures and she already got the untold story into her head. Then again, Carlisle did tell me that they were the second greatest coven in the vampire world; the other was the Volturi. Maybe they didn't have to guess when there was a big threat coming for the Cullens.

"When Bella saw Irina that day in the mountains," Edward explained, "she had Renesmee with her."

The only unnamed vampire in the room hissed, her eyes narrowed in slits. "_Irina_did this? To you? To Carlisle? _Irina?_"

"No," Tanya said. "Someone else..."

"Alice saw her go to them," Edward said. I noticed that he winced a little bit when he mentioned Alice's name.

"How could she do such a thing?" Eleazar asked rhetorically.

"Bella said Irina saw Nessie, I mean Renesmee, from a far away cliff," I explained. "So she mistook her to be an immortal child. I believe that's what you thought when you first saw her, too," I glanced to Nessie. "Which you would've continued to think if you hadn't waited for Edward to explain everything."

Jacob and Bella smiled at me, Carmen had her eyes focused in my direction now.

"I mean, I didn't see her, we ran into Bella and Renesmee afterwards."

They focused on me as I explained my side of the story, which I thought was a dud.

Tanya's eyes tightened. "No matter what she thought... you are our family."

_Now you're saying it,_ I thought to myself. Edward gave me a look. _Sorry._

"There's nothing we can do about Irina's choice now. It's too late," he explained. "Alice gave us a month."

Both Tanya and Eleazar's heads cocked to one side. Kate's brows furrowed.

"So long?" Eleazar asked.

"They are all coming. That must take some preparation."

Eleazar gasped. "The entire guard?"

"Not just the guard," Edward said, his jaw straining tight. "Aro, Caius, Marcus. Even the wives."

Their eyes filled themselves with shock.

"Impossible," Eleazar said blankly.

I couldn't understand his reaction. Edward said Eleazar knew the Volturi better than anyone.

"I would have said the same thing two days ago," Edward said calmly.

Eleazar scowled, and when he spoke it was nearly a growl. "But that doesn't make any sense. Why would they put themselves and the wives in danger like that?"

"It doesn't make sense from that angle. Alice said there was more to this than just punishment for what they think we've done. She thought you could help us."

"More than punishment? But what else is there?" Eleazar started pacing, hovering between the door and the space between us, his eyes furrowed as he stared at the floor.

"Where are the others, Edward? Where are Carlisle and Alice and the others?" Tanya asked.

"Looking for friends who might help us," he answered partly.

I looked to Marlene as she clenched to my arm slightly harder.

Tanya leaned toward him, holding her hands out int fron of her. "Edward, no matter how many friends you gather, we cant help you _win_. We can only die with you. You must know that. Of course, perhaps the four of us deserve that after what Irina has done now, after how weäve failed you in the past - for her sake that time as well."

Edward shook his head quickly. "We're not asking you to fight and die with us, Tanya. You know Carlisle would never ask for that."

"Then what are you asking from us, Edward?"

"We're just looking for witnesses. If we can make them pause, just for a moment. If they would let us explain..." He touched Nessie's cheek; she grabbed it and held it pressed against her skin. It made me think of my parents. "It's difficult to doubt our story when you see it for yourself."

Tanya nodded slowly. "Do you think her past will matter to them so much?"

"Only as it foreshadows her future. The point of the restriction was to protect us from exposure, from the excesses of children who could not be tamed."

"I'm not dangerous at all," Nessie said. Her voice was high and clear. "I never hurt Grandpa or Sue or Billy. I love humans. And wolf-people like my Jacob." She dropped Edward's hand and reached back to pat Jacob's arm.

Tanya and Kate exchanged a quick glance.

"If Irina had not come so soon," Edward said, "we could have avoided all of this. Renesmee grows at an unprecedented rate. By the time the month is past, she'll have gained another half year of development."

"Well, that is something we can certainly witness," Carmen said, determined. "We'll be able to promise that we've seen her mature ourselves. How could the Volturi ignore such evidence?"

"How, indeed?" Eleazar mumbled without looking up and continued his pace, like he wasn't paying attention.

"Yes, we can witness for you," Tanya said. Certainly that much. We will consider what more we might do."

"Tanya," Edward protested, "we don't expect you to fight with us." The thoughts in Tanya's mind was probably devastating to Edward, I presumed. To let someone else fight and possibly die for them, that was no good thought.

"If the Volturi won't pause to listen to our witness, we cannot simply stand by," Tanya insisted. "Of course, I should only speak for myself."

Kate snorted. "Do you really doubt me so much, sister?"

Tanya smiled widely at Kate. "It _is_ a suicide mission, after all."

Kate flashed a grin back at her and then shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm in."

"I, too, will do what I can to protect the child," Carmen promised. Then, she held out her arms toward Nessie, as if she couldn't resist. "May I hold you, _bebé linda_?"

Nessie reached eagerly toward Carmen. Carmen hugged her close, murmuring to her in a language I was not familiar with. Marlene was also ignorant to the language.

There was something about her that drew people to her. To make them willing to put their lives on jeopardy in her defense. She was irresistible.

In that moment, I felt that there was something we could pull it off. Once the witnesses were gathered, we would be able to make the Volturi understand the situation and listen to the Cullens' explanation.


	10. Chapter 9: Bella: Talented

BELLA CULLEN

"What's the werewolves' part in this?" Tanya asked, eyeing Jacob.

"Jacob spoke before Edward could answer. "If the Volturi won't stop to listen about Nessie, I mean Renesmee," he corrected himself, remembering that Tanya would not understand his stupid nickname, "_we_ will stop them."

"Very brave, child, but that would be impossible for more experienced fighters than you are."

"You don't know what we can do."

Tanya shrugged. "It is your own life, certainly, to spend as you choose."

Jacob's eyes flickered to Renesmee - still in Carmen's arms with Kate hovering over them - and it was easy to read the longing in them.

"She is special, that little one," Tanya mused. "Hard to resist."

"A very talented family," Eleazar murmured as he paced. His tempo was increasing; he flashed from the door to Carmen and back again every second. "A mind reader for a father, a shield for a mother, and then whatever magic this extraordinary child has bewitched us with. I wonder if there is a name for what she does, or if it is the norm for a vampire hybrid. As if such a thing could ever be considered normal! A vampire hybrid, indeed!"

"Excuse me," Edward said in a stunned voice. He reached out and caught Eleazar's shoulder as he was about to turn again for the door. "What did you just call my wife?"

Eleazar looked at Edward curiously, his manic pacing forgotten for the moment. "A shield, I _think_. She's blocking me now, so I can't be sure."

I stared at Eleazar, my brows furrowing in confusion. Shield? What did he mean about my blocking him? I was standing right there beside him, not defensive in any way.

"A shield?" Edward repeated, bewildered.

"Come on now, Edward" If I can't get a read on her, I doubt you can, either. Can you hear her thoughts right now?" Eleazar asked.

"No," Edward murmured. "But I've never been able to do that. Even when she was human."

"Never?" Eleazar blinked. "Interesting. That would indicate a rather powerful latent talent, if it was manifesting so clearly even before the transformation. I can't feel a way through her shield to get a sense of it at all. Yet she must be raw still - she's only a few months old." The look he gave Edward now was almost exasperated. "And apparently completely unaware of what she's doing. Totally unconscious. Ironic. Aro sent me all over the world searching for such anomalies, and you simply stumble across it by accident and don't even realize what you have." Eleazar shook his head in disbelief.

I frowned. "What are you talking about? How can I be a _shield_? What does that even mean?" All I could picture in my head was ridiculous medieval suit of armor.

Eleazar leaned his head to one side as he examined me. "I suppose we were overly formal about it in the guard. In truth, categorizing talents is a subjective, haphazard business; every talent is unique, never exactly the same thing twice. But you, Bella, are fairly easy to classify. Talents that are purely defensive, that protect some aspect of the bearer, are always called _shields_. Have you ever tested your abilities? Blocked anyone besides me and your mate?"

It took me a few seconds, despite how quickly my new brain worked, to organize my answer.

"It only works with certain things," I told him. "My head is sort of... private. But it doesn't stop Jasper from being able to mess with my mood or Alice from seeing my future."

"Purely a mental defense." Eleazar nodded to himself. "Limited, but strong."

"Aro couldn't hear her," Edward interjected. "Though she was human when they met."

Eleazar's eyes widened.

"Jane tried to hurt me, but she couldn't," I said. "Edward thinks Demetri can't find me, and that Alec can't bother me, either. Is that good?"

Eleazar, still gaping, nodded. "Quite."

"A shield!" Edward said, deep satisfaction saturating his tone. "I never thought of it that way. The only one I've ever met before was Renata, and what she did was so different."

Eleazar had recovered slightly. "Yes, no talent ever manifests in precisely the same way, because no one ever _thinks_ in exactly the same way."

"Who's Renata? What can she do?" Marlene asked - taking my line, but I let it go. Renesmee was interested, too, leaning away from Carmen so that she could see around Kate.

"Renata is Aro's personal bodyguard," Eleazar told her. "A very practical kind of shield, and a very strong one."

I vaguely remembered a small crowd of vampires hovering close to Aro in his macabre tower, some male, some female. I couldn't remember the women's faces in the uncomfortable, terrifying memory. One must have been Renata.

"I wonder...," Eleazar mused. "you see, Renata is a powerful shield against a physical attack. If someone approaches her - or Aro, as she is always close beside him in a hostile situation - they find themselves... diverted. There's a force around her that repels, though it's almost unnoticeable. You simply find yourself going a different direction that you planned, with a confused memory as to why you wanted to go that other way in the first place. She can project her shield several meters out from herself. She also protects Caius and Marcus, too, when they have a need, but Aro is her priority."

"What she does isn't actually physical, though," Edward continued for him. "Like the vast majority of our gifts, it takes place inside the mind."

"If she tried to keep you back, I wonder who would win?" Eleazar wondered, shaking his head. "I've never heard of Aro's or Jane's gifts being thwarted."

"Momma, you're special," Renesmee told me without any surprise, like she was commenting on the color of my clothes.

I felt disoriented. Didn't I already know my gift? I had my super self-control that had allowed me to skip right over the horrifying newborn year. Vampires only had one extra ability at most, right?

Or had Edward been correct in the beginning? Before Carlisle had suggested that my self-control could be something beyond the natural, Edward had thought my restraint was just a product of good preparation - _focus and attitude_, he'd declared.

Which one had been right? Was there more I could do? A name and a category for what I was?

"Can you project?" Kate asked interestedly.

"Project?" I asked.

"Push it out from yourself," Kate explained. "Shield someone besides yourself."

"I don't know, I've never tried. I didn't know I should do that."

"Oh, you might not be able to," Kate said quickly. "Heaven knows I've been working on it for centuries and the best I can do is run a current over my skin."

I stared at her, mystified.

"What do you mean?" Sarox asked, he was mystified too.

"Kate's got an offensive skill," Edward answered. "Sort of like Jane."

I flinched away from Kate automatically, and she laughed.

"I'm not sadistic about it," she assured me. "It's just something that comes in handy during a fight."

Kate's words were sinking in, beginning to make connections in my mind. _Shield someone besides yourself,_ she'd said. As if there were some way for me to include another person in my strange, quirky silent head.

I remembered Eward cringing on the ancient stones of the Volturi castle turret. Though this was a human memory, it was sharper, more painful than most of the others - like it had been branded into the tissues of my brain.

What if I could stop that from happening ever again? What if I could protect him? Protect Renesmee? What if there was even the faintest glimmer of possibility that I could shield them, too?

"You have to teach me what to do!" I insisted, unthinkingly grabbing Kate's arm. "You have to show me how!"

Kate winced at my grip. "Maybe - if you stop trying to crush my radius."

"Oops! Sorry!"

"You're shielding, all right," Kate said. "That move should have about shocked your arm off. You didn't feel anything just now?"

"That wasn't really necessary, Kate. She didn't mean any harm," Edward muttered under his breath. Neither of us paid attention to him.

"No, I didn't feel anything. Were you doing your electric-current thing?"

"I was. Hmm. I've never met anyone who couldn't feel it, immortal or otherwise."

"You said you project it? On your skin?"

Kate nodded. "It used to be just in my palms. Kind of like Aro."

"Or Renesmee," Edward interjected.

"You mean like how she communicates by touching us?" Sarox asked, his eyes flickered to Renesmee. Jacob did the same.

"But after a lot of practice," Kate said, "I can radiate the current all over my body. It's a good defense. Anyone who tries to touch me drops like a human that's been Tasered. It only downs him for a second, but that's long enough."

Sarox shrugged uncomfortably. Marlene gripped his arm tightly and reassured him quickly. But my thoughts were busy racing around the idea that I might be able to protect my little that I barely noticed, if I could just learn fast enough. I wished fervently that I might be good at this projecting thing, too, like I was somehow mysteriously good at all the other aspects of being a vampire. My human life had prepared me for things that came naturally, and I couldn't make myself trust this aptitude to last.

It felt like I had never wanted anything so badly before this: to be able to protect what I loved.

Because I was so preoccupied, I didn't notice the silent exchange going on between Edward and Eleazar until it became a spoken conversation.

"Can you think of even one exception, though?" Edward asked.

I looked over to make sense of his comment and realized that everyone else was already staring at the two men. They were leaning toward each other intently, Edward's expression tight with suspicion, Eleazar's unhappy and reluctant.

"I don't want to think of them that way," Eleazar said through his teeth. I was surprised at the change in the atmosphere.

"If you're right -," Eleazar began again.

Edward cut him off. "The thought was yours, Eleazar, not mine."

"If _I'm_ right... I can't even grasp what that would mean. It would change everything about the world we've created. It would change the meaning of my life. What I have been a part of."

"Your intentions were always the best, Eleazar."

"Would that even matter? What have I done? How many lives..."

Tanya put her hand on Eleazar's shoulder in a comforting gesture. "What did we miss, my friend? I want to know so that I can argue with these thoughts. You've never done anything worth castigating yourself this way."

"Oh, haven't I?" Eleazar muttered. Then he shrugged out from under her hand and began his pacing again, faster even than before.

Tanya watched him for half a second and then focused on Edward. "Explain."

Edward nodded, his tense eyes following Eleazar as he spoke. "He was trying to understand why so many of the Volturi would come to punish us. It's not the way they do things. Certainly, we are the biggest mature coven they've dealt with, but in the past other covens have joined to protect themselves, and they never presented much of a challenge despite their numbers. We are more closely bonded, and that's a factor, but not a huge one.

He was remembering other times that covens have been punished, for one thing or the other, and a pattern occurred to him. It was a pattern that the rest of the guard could never have noticed, since Eleazar was the one passing the pertinent intelligence privately to Aro. A pattern that only repeated every other century or so."

"What was the pattern?" Marlene asked, watching Eleazar as Edward was.

"Aro does not often personally attend a punishing expedition," Edward said. "But in the past, when Aro wanted something in particular, it was never long before evidence turned up proving that this coven or that coven had committed some unpardonable crime. The ancients would decide to go along to watch the guard administer justice. And then once the coven was all but destroyed, Aro would grant a pardon to one member whose thoughts, he would claim, were particularly repentant. Always, it would turn out that this vampire had the gift he had admired. Always, this person was given a place with the guard. The gifted vampire was won over quickly, always so grateful for the honor. There were no exceptions."

"It must be a heady thing to be chosen," Kate suggested.

"Ha!" Eleazar snarled, still in motion.

"There is one among the guard," Edward said, explaining Eleazar's angry reaction. "Her name is Chelsea. She has influence over the emotional ties between people. She can both loosen and secure these ties. She could make someone feel bonded to the Volturi, to want to belong, to want to _please_ them..."

Eleazar came to an abrupt halt. "We all understood why Chelsea was important. In a fight, if we could separate allegiances between allied covens, we could defeat them that much more easily. If we could distance the innocent members of a coven emotionally from the guilty, justice could be done without unnecessary brutality - the guilty could be punished without interference, and the innocent could be spared. Otherwise, it was impossible to keep the coven from fighting as a whole. So Chelsea would break the ties that bound them together. It seemed a great kindness to me, evidence of Aro's mercy. I did suspect that Chelsea kept our own band more tightly knit, but that, too, was a good thing. It made us more effective. It helped us coexist more easily."

This clarified old memories for me. It had not made sense to before how the guard obeyed their masters so gladly, with almost lover-like devotion.

"You mean, she can break any connection we have with one another?" Sarox asked with an edge to his voice. He gazed down on Marlene. Tanya gazed over each member of her coven.

Eleazar shrugged. "I was able to leave with Carmen." And then he shook his head. "But anything weaker than the bond between partners is in danger. In a normal coven, at least. Those are weaker bonds than those in family, though. Abstaining from human blood makes vampires more civilized - lets us form true bonds of love. I doubt she could turn your bond, Sarox."

Sarox and Tanya nodded, seemingly reassured, while Eleazar continued with his analysis.

"I could only think that the reason Aro had decided to come himself, to bring so many with him, is because his goal is not punishment but acquisition," Eleazar said. "He needs to be there to control the situation. But he needs the entire guard for protection from such a large, gifted coven. On the other hand, that leaves the other ancients unprotected in Volterra. Too risky - someone might try to take advantage. So they all come together. How else could he be sure to preserve the gifts that he wants? He must want them very badly," Eleazar mused.

Edward's voice was low as a breath. "From what I saw of his thoughts last year, Aro's never wanted anything more than he wants Alice." He turned to Sarox and Marlene. "But I believe he will find the two of you even more intriguing. Carlisle told me how he wished to acquire a person who could hold the Keyblade. And I can't think of a reason as to why a Princess wouldn't make him more intrigued."

Sarox and Marlene looked to each other, their eyes filled with worry. Tanya and Kate gazed at them, specifically on Marlene.

"Marlene is a Princess of Heart," Edward answered their silent question. "One of seven that hold very special powers. Powers that I presume would make the Volturi's gifts look like a circus."

"Well, you must be very talented, then," Tanya commented Sarox and Marlene.

Had Alice seen this coming more recently? Had she seen Chelsea trying to strip away her love for us, to bind her to Aro and Caius and Marcus?

"Is that why Alice left?" I asked, my voice breaking on her name.

Edward out his hand against my cheek. "I think it must be. To keep Aro from gaining one of the things he wants most. To keep her power out of his hands."

I heard Tanya and Kate murmuring in disturbed voices and remembered that they hadn't known about Alice.

"He wants you, too," I whispered.

He shrugged, his face a little too composed. "Not nearly as much. I can't really give him anything more than he already has. And of course that's dependant on his finding a way to force me to do his will. He know me, and he knows how unlikely that is." He raised one eyebrow sardonically.

Eleazar frowned at Edward's nonchalance. "He also knows your weaknesses," Eleazar printed out, and then he looked at me.

"It's nothing we need to discuss now," Edward said quickly.

Eleazar ignored the hint and continued. "He probably wants your mate, too, regardless. He must have been intrigued by a talent that could defy him in its human incarnation."

Edward was uncomfortable with this topic. I didn't like it, either. If Aro wanted me to do something - anything - all he needed to do was threaten Edward and I would comply. And vice versa.

Was death the lesser concern? Was it really capture we should fear?

Edward changed the subject. "I think the Volturi were waiting for this - for some pretext. They couldn't know what form their excuse would come in, but the plan was already in place for when it did come. That's why Alice saw their decision before Irina triggered it. The decision was already made, just waiting for the pretence of a justification."

"If the Volturi are abusing the trust all immortals have placed in them...," Carmen murmured.

"Does it matter?" Eleazar asked. "Who would believe it? And even if others could be convinced that the Volturi are exploiting their power, how would it make any difference? No one can stand against them."

"Though some of us are insane enough to try," Kate muttered.

Edward shook his head. "You're only here to witness, Kate. Whatever Aro's goal, I don't think he's ready to tarnish the Volturi's reputation for it. If we can take away his argument against us, he'll be forced to leave us in peace."

"Of course," Tanya murmured.

No one looked convinced.

Then, I heard the sound of tires turning off the highway pavement onto the Cullens' dirt drive.

"Oh crap, Charlie," I muttered. "Maybe the Denalis, and Sarox, and Marlene could hang out upstairs until-"

"No," Edward said in a distant voice. His eyes were far away, staring blankly at the door. "It's not your father." His gazed refocused on me. "Alice sent Peter and Charlotte, after all. Time to get ready for the next round."


	11. Chapter 10: Sarox: Company

_From this chapter forward, characters from other Disney, Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts franchise will be involved as part of the Cullens' witness crowd. The ones who will be involved are Sora, Kairi and Riku from _Kingdom Hearts_; Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy from the Disney franchise; Giselle and Robert Philip from _Enchanted_; Taran and Eilonwy from _The Black Cauldron_; Rapunzel and Eugene from _Tangled_; Eleanor and Dyne from _Final Fantasy VII_; Layla Williams and Will Stronghold from _Sky High_; Garnet til Alexandros XVII and Zidane Tribal from _Final Fantasy IX_; Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez from the _High School Musical series_; and finally Merlin from _The Sword of the Stone_._

_Hope you enjoy it._

* * *

SAROX

The Cullens' house was getting more and more crowded with guests that it barely had enough air to support anyone with a beating heart - if the guests' hearts were actually beating. But none of the visitors, other than us, needed to sleep, so there was no need to throw a whole set of blankets or sleeping bags, which would probably run out with the amount of visitors. Mealtimes, however, were dicey. They were only allowed to hunt outside of state, as long as they were nowhere near Forks or La Push, where the werewolves greatly restrained them from hunting activity; Edward was a gracious host, lending out his cars to their guests as needed without so much as a wince. Some of them had actually found us attractive, particularly PJ, but Edward and Bella restrained them from turning us into food. It made me uncomfortable, though. Even if they weren't hunting in La Push or Forks, they would still be out there feeding on people. I'd been told of this since Peter and Charlotte arrived weeks ago. The Cullens and the Denali Coven were the only vampires to feed on animal blood; and they considered themselves as 'vegetarians'.

Jacob was even more upset. The werewolves existed to prevent the loss of human life, and here was rampant murder being condoned barely outside the packs' borders. But under these circumstances, with Nessie in danger, he kept his mouth shut and glared at the floor rather than the vampires.

Bella was amazed at the easy acceptance the visiting vampires had for Jacob; the problems Edward had anticipated had never materialized. Marlene was rather fascinated with their cooperation, but I restrained her from going too near them without my supervision. It irritated her a little bit, but I didn't care, and she appreciated my protection.

Leah, Seth, Quil, and Embry were assigned to run with Sam for the moment. Jacob would have happily joined them, but he couldn't stand to be away from Nessie, and Nessie was always busy stunning their friends with her thought projecting thing. Peter and Charlotte were the first to be presented with the same introduction Edward and Bella had with the Denali Coven. Edward told me that Peter and Charlotte were two vampires from Jasper's past. Alice and Jasper sent them here without any explanation at all; but they trusted her instructions despite the lack of information. Alice had told them nothing about which direction she and Jasper were heading. She'd made no promise to ever see them again in the future, either.

Peter and Charlotte did not react to the sight of an "immortal child" as strongly as the Denali vampires, because though they knew the rule, they had never seen an immortal child before. Curiosity had driven them to allow Nessie's "explanation", and that compelled them to commit to witnessing for the Cullens.

It did not take long before Carlisle sent the Irish and Egyptian Covens arrived, and Edward repeated Renesmee's introduction again. The Irish Coven were surprisingly easy to convince. Siobhan - a woman of immense presence whose huge body was both beautiful and mesmerizing as it moved in smooth undulations - was the leader, but she and her hard-faced mate, Liam, were long used to trusting the judgement of their newest coven member. Their coven member, Maggie, had a gift for knowing when she was being lied ti, and her verdicts were never contested. Therefore when Edward told them their story, Maggie declared that he was telling the truth and Liam and Siobhan accepted their story absolutely.

The Egyptian Coven was harder to convince, particularly Amun, who tried to order his coven to leave. But Benjamin, a young vampire looking a few years above my age, persuaded him to stay with a few subtle threats about disbanding their alliance. Amun decided to stay for this, but refused to touch Nessie, and refused to let his mate, Kebi, touch her, too. Kebi and Tia never really spoke, but when Tia did, there was great insight and gravity to everything she said. Amun was definitely the outspoken leader of his coven, but he seemed to revolve around Benjamin, as if he was the solar energy that drew him in and gave him warmth; the same went for Kebi and Tia. And when Bella and I noticed how Eleazar stared at the boy with wide eyes, we realized Benjamin must have some talent, perhaps it was what drew the others to him.

It wasn't until the day after Edward told Bella the truth for us to realize that it was not the case.

"His talent is to physically influence the elements of nature - fire, water, earth, air," she explained carefully. "Amun turned Benjamin knowing he had some pretty strong talent, and he kept Benjamin hidden from the Volturi to avoid Aro's affection."

"Because his power is physical and strong?" I murmured.

She nodded. "That's why he threatened to leave, Amun is terrified of losing him. And since Kebi goes anywhere he goes, it wouldn't be natural to leave by herself. Tia is Benjamin's mate, so she goes wherever he goes."

That sounded a bit compelling.

Garrett, Mary and Randall arrived after the Egyptians. Garrett came alone, while Mary and Randall arrived together, though they did not travel together. They listened to Nessie's story and stayed to witness like the others, and even considered what they would do if the Volturi did not pause to listen.

Garrett got along with the Denali Coven quickly, more specifically Kate and Tanya, asking endless questions about their lifestyle. There was an aura around him that told he loved to challenge himself. I wondered if he would try abstaining from human blood, just to see if he could do it.

Carlisle and Esme returned one week after the day they left, and they brought a friend along, Alistair, whom Edward said had the ability to sense the location of living things as they approach. It was relief for Edward and Bella to have them back, finally someone more in the family. Emmett and Rosalie came back just a few days later.

Jacob got more surly and anxious with each new addition of guests. He would have us back on La Push whenever he could, but he could only stay away from Renesmee for as long as he would allow. Sam and Emily kept us company at night; they were still a bit upset without my and Marlene's leaving without their consent. They had us promise that we would only leave their house when they were around to give permission, which we agreed.

We did not hear anymore about Alice and Jasper until two unexpected, female vampires came to the Cullen house. Unlike the other house guests, the Amazon Coven dressed in a completely different style, like they were from another world. They wore nothing but animal skins - hide vests and tight fitting pants that laced on the sides with leather ties. Their legs, arms, fingers, black braids and faces were really long, like they'd been stretched. Even their noses were long. As soon as I saw their red eyes, I realized they were non-vegetarian vampires.

The taller woman took a step forth. "Carlisle," she greeted in a rough, deep voice.

"Zafrina and Senna! But where's Kachiri?" Carlisle asked. "I've never seen the three of you apart."

"Alice told us we needed to separate. It's uncomfortable to be away from each other, but Alice assured us that you needed us here, while she very much needed Kachiri somewhere else. That's all she would tell us, except that there was a great hurry...?" Her statement trailed off into a question, and Bella carried out Nessie to meet them.

The Amazonians listened very calmly to their story, and then allowed Nessie to touch them to prove the point. After they were shown Nessie's story, they too decided to witness for her. They were every bit as taken with Nessie as any of the other vampires, but Bella was uncomfortable to have them so close to her daughter. But Edward was thrilled to have the Amazons with us, because Zafrina was incredibly gifted; she could project any kind of illusion to immobilize her target. Her gift could make a very useful weapon in case the Volturi refused to listen.

"It's a very straightforward illusion," he explained to Bella.

It made sense that he needed to explain about Zafrina's gift; she was the only one who was immune to her powers and so could not see whatever illusion was being created at the same time. Zafrina was intrigued with her immunity as well.

"She can make most people see whatever she wants them to see - see that, and nothing else," Edward described as his eyes unfocused, his arms around Bella and Nessie. "For example, right now I would appear to be alone in the middle of a rain forest. It's so clear I might possibly believe it, except for the fact that I can still feel you in my arms."

Zafrina smiled in a hard, lip-twitched version.

"Impressive," he said after his eyes found focus again.

Nessie reached out fearlessly toward Zafrina. Her lips lifted in a grin.

"Can I see?" she asked curiously.

"What would you like to see?" Zafrina asked.

"What you showed Daddy."

Zafrina nodded. Nessie's eyes stared blankly into space as Bella watched anxiously. Her grin grew bigger.

"More," she commanded.

The news about Alice was somewhat comforting to the Cullens. They loved her and Jasper like family, which explained why they were so saddened when the two of them took off without as much as a proper goodbye. Esme muttered sadly to me once about how she took love in them ever since they joined their family fifty years ago. I could not understand why someone gaining so much love from an adoptive family would leave on their own when they were needed more than ever. It made me angry to think that Alice and Jasper would be such cowards, I wanted to question their actions. Edward read my mind and told me off, his voice breaking. "Alice and Jasper are not like that. They would never abandon someone in need."

I shut my mouth. He did not like my _bad-thinking_ any of his siblings. I dismissed it immediately.

* * *

"A day at the lake?" Bella asked as she shifted Nessie to her left arm. Edward rested one hand on her shoulder. Jacob leaned against a wall, his eyes flickered at us as he listened to our conversation.

Marlene and I agreed to take Nessie to a nearby lake for a swim, but PJ believed we needed permission first - which we agreed.

I nodded.

"Yes, and Jacob's coming too," I explained. "We'll be close by. And of course, you can come along too if you want to. Or send anyone else with us."

PJ and Marlene stepped forward till they were right next to me.

"We're not going to do anything dangerous," PJ assured them.

Marlene nodded in agreement. Nessie touched Bella's cheek, pleadingly. Bella and Edward shared looks; Edward nodded reassuringly. And then, they both turned back to us.

"Okay," Bella agreed. "Have fun."

She reached Nessie out, but then suddenly stopped midway and turned her glance to the ceiling, Edward and Jacob did the same. Nessie looked up one second later. I turned to Marlene, she was as puzzled as I was. When I looked at PJ, his eyes were already focused upward. A few seconds later, it finally touched the two of us and we looked upward, too.

Loud roars of rocket blasts and engines came closer and closer from beyond the ceiling by the second.

"What is _that_?" Jacob screamed, his face creased together.

"Looks like we got more witnesses than we thought we would have," Edward answered, his eyes still focused.

The sounds slowly shifted direction as the source moved outside the house, now louder than ever: we followed it to the front porch, and there they were. Four enormous Gummi Ships landed across the porch, one of which we recognized. I barely noticed that everyone in the house had emerged.

The vessel had a red body; the long golden wings were supported with motors. Inside the half-round, granite-hard glass was Max. As soon as the vessels met ground, the engines died and silence took over.

It took a few more seconds to see three figures behind him. I recognized them through the round glass, and when it lifted backward and my suspicion was confirmed. They weren't mere witnesses, they were my parents and uncle.

"_Mom? Dad? Uncle Riku?_" I murmured rhetorically, and then my body stunned. I had not expected their visit.

Dad jumped down from the ship and landed almost without a sound.

"Hey, son," he greeted with a waving hand.

Mom landed next to him. She smiled her ever beautiful, gentle smile and waved.

I waved back, and then automatically ran into their arms. "I missed you," I muttered.

Their warm arms reminded me of the time before I got chosen to carry the Keyblade, of how life used to be easier. Despite it was dull and I did not regret making the decision that brought to this new, exciting life, the memories of my old life welled up inside me. Like they were the roots that supported me along the way.

"We missed you, too," Kairi, my mom, whispered in my ear.

Then my eyes caught the only thing that could affect our silent reunion. Marlene was tightly squeezed in both her parents' arms as they shared a reunion of their own. Tears welled up in her and her mother's eyes.

All Gummi Ships opened their impenetrable round glasses and all passengers emerged. Max jumped down from the ship and we greeted with a hand clapping interact. Uncle Riku jumped down right after him, and patted my back.

"Have you grown taller, kid?" he asked.

I shrugged out of my parents' embrace to meet the unfamiliar faces.

Max' original destination was his home world, so it made sense that his father, Goofy; PJ's magician teacher, Donald; and the King of Disney Town, Mickey, were here. But there were more faces than I expected.

Troy and Gabriella from the Land of Musicals were standing behind Donald. They waved at us in smiles.

Emerging from King Mickey's ship were Layla and Will from Sky High, and Taran and Princess Eilonwy from Prydain. I couldn't help myself but feel delighted by Layla and Will's presence. Not only were they Princess of Heart and Keyblade master, separately, but they also had supernatural powers that could give us an advantage. Will's flying could make him hard to catch by vampires, and his super-strength was comparable to Emmett's, definitely strong enough to destroy a vampire. Layla's power to control nature may not work as effectively against vampires, but it could distract one long enough. She could partner with Benjamin's power, too. I wondered why they hadn't brought Warren along, his power of fire-throwing was enough to destroy a vampire.

Giselle, her husband Robert, Princess Rapunzel and her former thief boyfriend Eugene, formerly known as Flynn Ryder, disembarked from Goofy's ship.

They all greeted us in joy. But there was something else that worried me now; the only vampires who fed on animals were the Cullens and the Denali coven. The thought of all the non-vegetarian vampires being so close to my friends bothered me to the tip of my toes. I flickered my eyes over my shoulder to see the Cullens and their house guests standing unmoved since our side of friends arrived.

"What're you doing here?" Marlene asked in a surprised voice.

"Max and Jiminy sent people to our worlds and told us the whole story," Rapunzel answered.

Flynn nodded in agreement. "She just _had_ to come help you out, so I was dragged to come with her. The whole kingdom would be on my back if anything happened to their princess."

Rapunzel eyed at him teasingly, and vice versa.

Giselle and Robert came to our side.

"I think of you like a sister, Marlene," she said. "There's no way I would let a sister face danger while I sit on the sidelines."

"But, what about Morgan?" Marlene asked in a worried tone. "Who's gonna take care of her?"

"Oh, I already had Prince Edward and Nancy take her to Anadalasia," Robert answered calmly. "She'll be fine."

The other Princesses and their acquaintances joined our little union to greet their "sister".

King Mickey stepped through the crowd to come to our side. In an act of politeness, Marlene and PJ came to my side and we bowed together.

"Your Majesty," I said.

"No need to be polite," he assured us, then his voice turned harsh, "Max has told us the whole story. As travelers from other worlds, you should know that you're not supposed to be interfering with the affairs of other worlds. And you've broken those rules."

He must be extremely angry with our decision. Of course he was. I was told never to meddle too much in other worlds' affairs, and yet I broke that rule. I was restrained from telling others of my origins; and I broke that rule, too. Max's pleading had given him no choice but to help. It must have also been his idea to alert my parents and let them worry to the point that they would come here and face all the dangerous vampires, whom they would be forbidden to kill due to their common goal.

We would have to take them down to La Push before Carlisle's lost control of their thirst and make a jump on them.

"So I decided to send your parents and some other friends to help you out," he continued.

I lifted my head to face him and asked, "You _decided_?"

"Yes," he nodded. "Welp, to be honest, I'm not very happy about your decision, but helping others is what we're supposed to do. And helping others should always come first before asking others for help. You reminded me of that, Sarox."

He was talking to me, but his glance shifted to my father before he finished that sentence.

I looked over at Edward and his family, then back to the King and the others.

"Um... Your Majesty, Mom, Dad, everybody," I began and pointed my arm to the Cullens. "Allow me to introduce Dr. Carlisle Cullen; his wife, Esme, and their adoptive children, Emmett, Rosalie, and Edward; Edward's wife, Bella; and their daughter, Renesmee."

Before we knew it, Rosalie, Emmett and Esme were standing beside Bella, Nessie, Edward and Carlisle. The family stepped forward slowly and inclined their heads.

"Glad to make your acquaintance, Your Majesty," Carlisle greeted.

King Mickey took a step forward and offered his hand, Carlisle knelt on his knees and accepted. "Max told us about your family and the problem at hand. We have come to help you testify."

Their beautiful, flawless faces creased as worries expressed from them.

"We will not ask you to put your lives at risk for our sake," Carlisle said calmly. "There's no guarantee they'll listen or believe our testimony."

My dad stepped forth. "Nevertheless, we'll do what we can to help."

"Thank you," he said with a gentle grin. "Your presence give us more than we could ever ask for."

Dad and King Mickey smiled at him.

Bella approached with Renesmee in her arms. King Mickey stepped forth, and I followed.

"Your Majesty," I said, "Renesmee has a gift for explaining things. Would you like to let her explain?"

Mickey looked at Nessie curiously. Nessie reached out with her hand, waiting. He turned to me for a moment, I nodded encouragingly, and then he reached out with his face. The reaction was the same as all the others before him. Donald and Goofy looked on cautiously, but made no move. After a few minutes, she finally retreated. Mickey's eyebrows creased.

Jacob looked curiously at Edward as he approached. Edward gave him a confident grin, and I knew they were having a quiet conversation again. It irritated me a little bit.

"I see," Mickey said. "We will do what we can to help if the Volturi refuses to listen."

The Denalis came out now. Eleazar glared at us with wide incredulous eyes, like he had just seen the most incredible golden statue. Edward's eyes flickered at him for a moment, and then turned to the same direction with the same expression on his face.

I knew why they were stunned. Anyone would be curious about the beings that existed outside their worlds, those who had completely different cultures and habits. But Eleazar could identify the abilities of others. He must have sensed more than he expected. Before, he had only met me and Marlene - the only two who could utilize the power of the Keyblade. And Marlene was the only Princess of Heart when he first came.

And now, there were more than he had expected. A large number of Keyblade warriors, each with their distinctive capabilities; and five Princesses had come to join their "sister." Donald was a master of the magical arts, so his powers were quite useful. For someone who had only encountered vampires with special qualities and heard of _one _Keyblade master, it made sense that he would be surprised to see the wide number of such mythical beings.

Our conversation was cut short by a sudden puff of smoke that spontaneously exploded about ten yards away from the house. Everyone present flickered their eyes warily and hissed, standing on alert. The smoke cleared, and then there were four more of our friends; Garnet - the seventh and last Princess of Heart with the same summoning power as Marlene's; Zidane, her guardian with a monkey tail and a strong Keyblade wielder; and Merlin - the self-proclaimed number one magician. Resting on his shoulder was our royal chronicler, Jiminy Cricket.

_This probably amazes Eleazar even more,_ I thought.

After we explained the story to our final witnesses, all of our friends allowed Nessie to show them her story, repeating the parade like the past two weeks. That convinced them even more to help.

Nessie was taken in by the Princesses, Giselle was particularly astonished by her beauty and gift.

We settled our friends down on La Push. Merlin magically created five wooden cottages for all of us in the woods near Emily's house, each cottage had a style and size of its own. Since most of our friends were unfamiliar with each other, it became a good opportunity to let them start now, since everyone will be living together for a while. Layla and Merlin kept the company supplied with food. We thanked Emily and Sam for their kindness before leaving their house, but Emily asked us to visit when we had time.

The Princesses got acquainted with each other in no time.

Carlisle had prohibited his house guests from chewing on us when we were outside the La Push border, but we asked our friends to stay down on La Push just to minimize the problems.

Dad and Mom had already made new friends on La Push. Paul dared one of us to a challenge once; he'd been curious about how we could take on a fully grown werewolf ever since I knocked Jake into the air, and he was one of the strongest in their tribe. Dad was the one who accepted the challenge. The fight did not take long. Paul was defeated with a single swipe from dad's Keyblade. Paul wasn't happy with his defeat and demanded rematch, but Sam managed to talk him out of starting a potential fight between and break our allegiances, with Alpha command, no less. Jacob had told me all about the Alpha's abilities.

At night, we either hung out, hunted or practiced fighting skills and powers in preparation for the Volturi. At day, King Mickey and some of us would be at the Cullen house to learn about the Volturi and their world's culture while watching Bella learn fighting skills and, more importantly, how to project her shield. She wasn't doing a very good job, though, and despite I was told vampires couldn't get tired physically, the mental exhaustion in her eyes was impossible to miss. Edward had volunteered the role of guinea pig: Kate would shock him, and Bella would try to push the shield out to protect him. It hadn't gone well, though. Kate always shocked Edward to the ground, no matter how hard she tried to push herself.

* * *

Today, we finally hit the lake: Marlene, PJ, Max, Jacob, Nessie and I.

Bella was busy with battle training, and more importantly practicing how to project her shield. She decided to let Nessie come with us and escape the threatening truth, even just for a little while. Jacob was allowed to come with us, too.

"You ready?" PJ asked.

He held his staff ready.

"For what?" Jacob asked.

We hadn't told them about our real agenda of today's activity. He assumed it was swimming, which was only partly true.

"What we came here to do."

"Which you still haven't said what it is."

He held Nessie's hand gently. Marlene and Max smiled reassuringly. "It's better to keep it secret first," Marlene stated. "But believe us, it's one of the most magical things you'll see."

He nodded in defeat.

Marlene and I shared a uniting smile. We had planned to surprise. Unless Edward had already told him, we would keep it secret.

"You might like it, Jake," I assumed, and then turned to the lake. "Let's go."

"Yep, let's get in the water," Max said cheerfully. "A-hyuck!"

Jacob lifted Nessie into his arms, and then we walked into the water with our shoes on. The water stung like a thousand needles against my skin, but I told myself to endure it, because it would be over very soon when the fun begins. Forks was living through a cold winter season, so it made sense that the water would sting this much.

_It'll be worth it,_ I thought to myself.

As soon as it touched our angles, PJ stopped. Max pulled Jacob on the arm while Marlene and I slowly walked a few feet further from them. PJ readied his staff.

"Ooh, _magic_. What're we doin'?" Jacob asked humorously.

"Just relax, PJ'll take care of the rest," Max assured him and then exclaimed. "A-hyuck, this is gonna be fun!"

Jacob looked to us. "Why aren't they with us?"

"They can do it themselves."

PJ waved his staff in the air. It did not take long before something finally happened: the water around them swirled around like a harmless whirlpool, and then it spread around the four of them, wrapping them inside like a giant sphere.

I turned to Marlene. Her smile was ever so dazzling. "You ready?" I asked.

She nodded. "What did you expect?"

I took her hand into mine. Then, we ran into the water together with the most of our speed and dived in.

In a matter of seconds, I felt the freezing water wrap around me as my clothes magically disappeared. It stung to the point that I could scream, but then it began. My legs glued together while my bones melted. My feet shrunk and tightened as my toes melted together and stretched out, until they were flat like a fan. The skin on my lower body turned blue and slippery. As soon as I was sure my transformation was complete, I released my breath and sucked the water through my nose and mouth into my lungs. Like I knew from the beginning, it did not suffocate me. Rather it became part of my breathing order. The freezing water suddenly felt warm to my skin, it was no longer my enemy, it was my friend.

Marlene's legs were replaced by a pink, scaley fishtail. She wore nothing but a set of blue bra made of seashells around her chest. Her long ponytail remained unchanged.

Max, PJ, Jacob, and Nessie quickly caught up with us in their new forms: Max was a green sea turtle, the only recognizable part about him was his head. PJ retained his dog form on his head and torso, but his waist was attached by three pairs of blue colored tentacles. Nessie had a violet fishtail and a set of golden shells attached wrapped on her chest with golden strings.

Jacob was the hardest to recognize. He did not retain any human appearance like we suspected, instead his entire body was altered into a huge sea lion. He was bigger than an average sea lion, stronger and more dangerous. The only part retaining any human appearance at all was his black hair.

"You know, you can breathe in the water," Max told Jacob.

I did not notice he was holding his breath.

Jacob released his breath and examined his new body, feeling disgruntled. "How come I get to be the seal?" he complained.

"Prob'ly because you're the only one who can turn into a giant wolf," PJ answered in a teasing voice.

"Well, c'mon, let's make the most of these waters and enjoy all the fun we can have for today," Marlene suggested, breaking the tension and offered Nessie her hand.

She accepted, and then Marlene pulled her from Jacob's back.

"C'mon! Let's go! A-hyuck!" Max shouted delightfully.

We dived deeper into the abyss of the water. Jacob had the most difficult time keeping up pace with us, mainly because he was not familiar with his new form and the swimming techniques that come with it. He also said that no one from his or Sam's pack could swim in wolf forms as easily as their human forms. Max kept pace to give him advice on swimming underwater. Surprisingly Jacob mastered his skill perfectly in a short time, and even beat Max in a race.

We played all kinds of games together; when we played hide-and-seek, Jacob always brought Nessie to shore and found the perfect spot to hide her before hiding away himself, only to diverse us. When Jacob was the "it", PJ used magic to shield himself from us, which gave us the longest time to find. When we finally gave up, he reappeared.

After all the swimming and playing, we were finally exhausted. I rested my back on the lake bottom , my eyes stared at the dim light emitted from the far up surface. Marlene rested beside me, and then Max and PJ landed, too. Jacob landed on my right side, and had Nessie lying comfortably on his stomach.

"Ah, this is amazing," he said softly.

"You got it," I added.

"Hey, what about you, Nessie? You havin' a good time?"

Nessie, despite she was receiving support from the water, crawled up to his shoulder and touched his face.

"I thought so," Jacob said with a smile on his stretched face. It was very awkward to see him as a seal, after I'd already seen him as a different animal.

Nessie crawled to the side and rested beside his neck. We lied there and did not resurface.


	12. Chapter 11: Bella: Enlightment

BELLA CULLEN

Every minute of the day that I wasn't with Renesmee or learning to fight, I was in the backyard working with Kate, trying to push my internal shield outside my own brain to protect someone else. Edward encouraged me in this training. I knew he hoped I would find a way of contributing that satisfied me while also keeping me out of the line of fire.

It was just so hard. There was nothing to get a hold of, nothing solid to work with. I had only my raging desire to be of use, to be able to keep Edward, Renesmee, and as much of my family as possible safe with me. Over and over I tried to force the nebulous shield outside of myself, with only faint, sporadic success. It felt like I was wrestling to stretch an invisible rubber band - a band that would change from concrete tangibility into insubstantial smoke at any random moment.

Only Edward was willing to be our guinea pig - to receive shock after shock from Kate while I grappled incompletely with the insides of my head. We worked for hours at a time, and I felt like I should be covered in sweat from the exertion, but of course my perfect body didn't betray me that way. My weariness was all mental.

It killed me that it was Edward who had to suffer, my arms wrapped uselessly around him while he winced over and over from Kate's "low" setting. I tried as hard as I could to push my shield around us both; every now and then I would get it, and then it would slip away again.

I hated this practice, and I wished that Zafrina would help instead of Kate. Then all Edward would have to do was look at Zafrina's illusions until I could stop him from seeing them. But Kate insisted that I needed better motivation - by which she meant my hatred of watching Edward's pain. I was beginning to doubt her assertion from the first day we'd met - that she wasn't sadistic about the use of her gift. She seemed to be enjoying herself to me.

"Hey," Edward said cheerfully, trying to hide any evidence of distress in his voice. Anything to keep me from fighting practice. "That one barely stung. Good job, Bella."

I took a deep breath, trying to grasp exactly what I'd done right. I tested the elastic band, struggling to force it to remain solid as I stretched it away from me.

"Again, Kate," I grunted through my clenched teeth.

Kate pressed her palm to Edward's shoulder.

He sighed in relief. "Nothing that time."

She raised an eyebrow. "That wasn't low, either."

"Good," I huffed.

"Get ready," she told me, and reached out to Edward again.

This time he shuddered, and a low breath hissed between his teeth.

"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" I chanted, biting my lip. Why couldn't I get this right?

"You're doing an amazing job, Bella," Edward said, pulling me tight against him. "You've really only been working at this for a few days and you're already projecting sporadically. Kate, tell her how well she's doing."

Kate pursed her lips. "I don't know. She's obviously got tremendous ability, and we're only beginning to touch it. She can do better, I'm sure. She's just lacking incentive."

I stared at her in disbelief, my lips automatically curling back from my teeth. How could she think I lacked motivation with her shocking Edward right here in front of me?

I heard murmurs from the audience that had grown steadily as I practiced - only Eleazar, Carmen, and Tanya at first, but then Garrett had wandered over, then Benjamin and Tia, Siobhan and Maggie, Zafrina and Senna, Sarox' dad - Sora, Riku and King Mickey, and now even Alistair was peering down from a window on the third story. The spectators agreed with Edward; they thought I was already doing well.

"Kate...," Edward said in a warning voice as some new course of action occured to her, but she was already in motion. She darted along the curve of the river to where Jacob, Max, Sarox, Marlene, PJ, and Renesmee were walking slowly. They were all laughing, as if they had the most fun than any of us. I was glad they did.

"Nessie," Kate said - the newcomers had quickly picked up the irritating nickname, "would you like to come help your mother?"

"No," I half-snarled.

Edward hugged me reassuringly. I shook him off just as Renesmee flitted across the yard to me, with Kate right behind her.

"Absolutely not, Kate," I hissed.

Renesmee reached for me, and I opened my arms automatically. She curled into me, pressing her head into the hollow beneath my shoulder.

"But Momma, I _want_ to help," she said in a determined voice. Her hand rested against my neck, reinforcing her desire with images of the two of us together, a team.

"No," I said, quickly backing away. Kate had taken a deliberate step in my direction, her hand stretched toward us.

"Stay away from us, Kate," I warned her.

"No." She began stalking forward. She smiled like a hunter cornering her prey.

I shifted Renesmee so that she was clinging to my back, still backing away at a pace that matched Kate's. Now my hands were free, and if Kate wanted to keep _her_ hands attached to her wrists, she'd better keep her distance.

Kate probably didn't understand, never having known for herself the passion of a mother for her child. She must not have realized just how far past _too far_ she'd already gone. I was so furious that my vision took on a strange reddish tint, and I my tongue tasted like burning metal. The strength I usually worked to keep restrained flowed through my muscles, and I knew I could crush her into diamond-hard rubble if she pushed me to it.

The rage brought every aspect of my being into sharper focus. I could even feel the elasticity of my shield more exactly now - feel that it was not a band so much as a layer, a thin film that covered me from head to toe. With the anger rippling through my body, I had a better sense of it, a tighter hold on it. I stretched it around myself, out from myself, swaddling Renesmee completely inside it, just in case Kate got past my guard.

Kate took another calculated step forward, and a vicious snarl ripped up my throat and through my clenched teeth.

"Be careful, Kate," Edward cautioned.

Kate took another step, and then made a mistake even someone as inexpert as I could recognize. Just a short leap away from me, she looked away, turning her attention from me to Edward.

Renesmee was secure on my back; I coiled to spring.

"Can you hear anything from Nessie?" Kate asked him, her voice calm and easy.

Edward darted into the space between us, blocking my line to Kate.

"No, nothing at all," he answered. "Now give Bella some space to calm down, Kate. You shouldn't goad her like that. I know she doesn't seem her age, but she's only a few months old."

"We don't have time to do this gently, Edward. We're going to have to push her. We only have a few weeks, and she's got the potential to-"

"Back off for a minute, Kate."

Kate frowned but took Edward's warning more seriously than she'd taken mine.

Renesmee's hand was on my neck; she was remembering Kate's attack, showing me that no harm was meant, that Daddy was in on it...

This did not pacify me. The spectrum of light I saw still seemed tainted with crimson. But I was in better control of myself, and I could see the wisdom of Kate's words. The anger helped me. I would learn faster under pressure.

That didn't mean I liked it.

"Kate," I growled. I rested my hand on the small of Edward's back. I could still feel my shield like a strong, flexible sheet around Renesmee and me. I pushed it farther, forcing it around Edward. There was no sign of a flaw in the stretchy fabric, no threat of a tear. I panted with the effort, and my words came out sounding breathless rather than furious. "Again," I said to Kate. "Edward only."

She rolled her eyes but flitted forward and pressed her palm to Edward's shoulder.

"Nothing," Edward said. I heard the smile in his voice.

"And now?" Kate asked.

"Still nothing."

"And now?" This time, there was the sound of strain in her voice.

"Nothing at all."

Kate grunted and stepped away.

"Can you see this?" Zafrina asked in her deep, wild voice, staring intently at the three of us as she emerged from the rest of the crowd, with Senna closely behind her. Her English was strangely accented, her words pulling up in unexpected places.

"I don't see anything I shouldn't," Edward said.

"And you, Renesmee?" Zafrina asked.

Renesmee smiled at Zafrina and shook her head.

My fury had almost entirely ebbed, and I clenched my teeth together, panting faster as I pushed out against the elastic shield; it felt like it was getting heavier the longer I held it. It pulled back, dragging inward.

"No one panic," Zafrina warned the little group watching me. "I want to see how far she can extend."

There was a shocked gasp from everyone there - Eleazar, Carmen, Tanya, Garrett, Benjamin, Tia, Siobhan, Maggie, Mickey, Sora, Riku, PJ, Max, Marlene, Sarox - everyone but Senna who seemed prepared for whatever Zafrina was doing. The others' eyes were blank, their expressions anxious.

"Raise your hand when you get your sight back," Zafrina instructed. "Bow, Bella. See how many you can shield."

My breath came out in a huff. Kate was the closest person to me besides Edward and Renesmee, but even she was about ten feet away. I locked my jaw and shoved, trying to heave the resisting, resilient safeguard farther from myself. Inch by inch I drove it toward Kate, fighting the reaction that fought back with every fraction that I gained. I only watched Kate's anxious expression while worked, and I groaned quietly with relief when her eyes blinked and focused. She raised her hand.

"Fascinating!" Edward murmured under his breath. "It's like one-way glass. I can read everything they're thinking, but they can't reach me behind it. And I can hear Renesmee, though I couldn't when I was on the outside. I'll bet Kate could shock me now, because she's underneath the umbrella. I still can't hear you... hmmm. How does that work? I wonder if..."

He contionued to mumble to himself, but I couldn't listen to the words. I ground my teeth together, struggling to force the shield out to Garrett, who was closest to Kate. His hand came up.

"Very good,"Zafrina complimented me. "Now - "

But she's spoken too soon; with a sharp gasp, I felt my shield recoil like a rubber band stretched too far, snapping back into its original shape. Renesmee, experiencing for the first time the blindness Zafrina had conjured for the others, trembled against my back. Wearily, I fought back against the elastic pull, forcing the shield to include her again.

"Can I have a minute?" I panted. Since I'd become a vampire, I hadn't felt the need to rest even once before this moment. It was unnerving to feel so drained and yet so strong at the same time.

"Of course," Zafrina said, and the spectators relaxed as she let them see again.

"Kate," Garrett called as the others murmured and drifted slightly away, disturbed by the moment of blindness; vampires were not used to feeling vulnerable. The tall, sandy-haired Garrett was the only non-gifted immortal who seemed drawn to my practice sessions. I wondered what the lure was for the adventurer.

"I wouldn't, Garrett," Edward cautioned.

Garrett continued toward Kate despite the warning, his lips pursed in speculation. "They say you can put a vampire flat on his back."

"Yes," she agreed. Then, with a sly smile, she wiggled her fingers playfully at him. "Curious?"

Garrett shrugged. "That's something I've never seen. Seems like it might be a bit of an exaggeration..."

"Maybe," Kate said, her face suddenly serious. "Maybe it only works on the weak or the young. I'm not sure. You look strong, though. Perhaps you could withstand my gift." She stretched her hand out to him, palm up - a clear invitation. Her lips twitched, and I was pretty sure her grave expression was an attempt to hustle him.

Garrett grinned at the challenge. Very confidently, he touched her palm with his index finger.

And then, with a loud gasp, his knees buckled and he keeled over backward. His head hit a piece of granite with a sharp cracking noise. It was shocking to watch. My instincts recoiled against seeing an immortal incapacitated that way; it was profoundly wrong.

"I told you so," Edward muttered.

Garrett's eyelids trembled for a few seconds, and then his eyes opened wide. He stared up at the smirking Kate, and a wondering smile lit his face.

"Wow," he said.

"Did you enjoy that?" she asked skeptically.

"I'm not crazy," he laughed, shaking his head as he got slowly to his knees, "but that was sure something!"

"That's what I hear."

Edward rolled his eyes.

And then there was a low commotion from the front yard. I heard Carlisle speaking over a babble of surprised voices.

"Did Alice send you?" he asked someone, his voice unsure, slightly upset.

Another unexpected guest?

Edward darted into the house and most of the others imitated him. I followed more slowly, Renesmee still perched on my back. I would give Carlisle a moment. Let him warm up the new guest, prepare him or her or them for the idea of what was coming.

I pulled Renesmee into my arms as I walked cautiously around the house to enter through the kitchen door with Sarox, Marlene, Max and PJ following closely behind, listening to what I couldn't see.

"No one sent us," a deep whispery voice answered Carlisle's question. I was immediately reminded of the ancient voices of Aro and Caius, and I froze just inside the kitchen.

I knew the front room was crowded - almost everyone had gone in to see the newest visitors - but there was barely any noise. Shallow breathing, that was all.

King Mickey, Riku, and Sora were farthest from the crowd, looking unsure how to face the new guests.

Carlisle's voice was wary as he responded. "Then what brings you here now?"

"Word travels," a different voice answered, just as feathery as the first. "We heard hints that Volturi were moving against you. There were whispers that you would not stand alone. Obviously, the whispers were true. This is an impressive gathering. I'm surprised to see humans, though."

"We are not challenging the Volturi," Carlisle answered in a strained tone. "There has been a misunderstanding, that is all. A very serious misunderstanding, to be sure, but one we're hoping to clear up. What you see are witnesses. We just need the Volturi to listen. We didn't - "

"We don't care what they say you did," the first voice interrupted. "And we don't care if you broke the law."

"No matter jpw egregiously," the second inserted.

"We've been waiting a millennium and a half for the scum to be challenged," said the first. "If there is any chance they will fall, we will be here to see it."

"Or even to help defeat them," the second added. They spoke in a smooth tandem, their voices so similar that less sensitive ears would assume there was only one speaker. "If we think you have a chance of success."

"Bella?" Edward called to me in a hard voice. "Bring Renesmee here, please. Maybe we should test our Romanian visitors' claims."

It helped to know that probably half of the vampires and other-world beings in the other room would come to Renesmee's defense if these Romanians were upset by her. I didn't like the sound of their voices, or the dark menace in their words. As I walked into the room, I could see that I was not alone in that assessment. Most of the motionless vampires glared with hostile eyes, and a few - Carmen, Tanya, Zafrina, and Senna - repositioned themselves subtly into defensive poses between the newcomers and Renesmee.

The vampires at the door were both slight and short, one dark-haired and the other with hair so ashy blond that it looked pale gray. They had the same powdery look to their skin as the Volturi, though I thought it was not so pronounced. I couldn't be sure about that, as I had never seen the Volturi except with human eyes; I could not make a perfect comparison. Their sharp, narrow eyes were dark burgundy, with no milky film. They wore very simple black black clothes that could pass as modern but hinted at older designs.

The dark one grinned when I came into view. "Well, well, Carlisle. You _have_ been naughty, haven't you?"

"She's not what you think, Stefan."

"And we don't care either way," the blond responded. "As we said before."

"Then you're welcome to observe, Vladimir, but it is definitely not our plan to challenge the Volturi, as _we_ said before."

"Then we'll just cross our fingers," Stefan began.

"And hope we get lucky," finished Vladimir.

In the end, we pulled together forty-three witnesses - the Irish, Siobhan, Liam, and Maggie; the Egyptians, Amun, Kebi, Benjamin, and Tia; the Amazons, Zafrina and Senna; the Romanians, Vladimir and Stefan; the nomads, Charlotte and Peter, Garrett, Alistair, Mary and Randall; the four kids, Sarox, Marlene, Max, PJ, and their families and friends from many other worlds - to supplement our family of eleven. Tanya, Kate, Eleazar, and Carmen insisted on being counted as part of our family.

We all were beginning to be a little bit hopeful. Even I couldn't help it. Renesmee had won over so many in such a brief time. The Volturi only had to listen for just the tiniest second...

The last two Romanians - focused only on their bitter resentment of the ones who had overthrown their empire fifteen hundred years earlier - took everything in stride. They would not touch Renesmee, but they showed no aversion to her. They seemed mysteriously delighted by our alliance with the werewolves and the people from other worlds. They watched me practice with Zafrina and Kate, watched Edward answer unspoken questions, watched Benjamin pull geysers of water from the river or sharp gusts of wind from the still air with just his mind, watched the Keyblade holders practice their comparable strengths and reflexes - we had prohibited them from feeding on any of our living witnesses, and their eyes glowed with their fierce hope that the Volturi had finally met their match.

We did not hope for the same things, but we all hoped.


	13. Chapter 12: Bella: Forgery

BELLA CULLEN

I went to find J. Jenks after I dropped Renesmee at Charlie's. I used the excuse of hanging out with my dad to be away from Edward and locate the man Alice had left a clue for me to find.

Jacob, Marlene, and Sarox decided to come. Jake was getting sick with all the vampire house guests. "Yeah, I know, I know," he said when I wanted to counter his comment on them. "They're the good guys, they're the here to help, they're going to save us all. Etcetera, etcetera. Say what you want, I still think Dracula One and Dracula Two are creep-tacular." I couldn't disagree with him there. The Romanians weren't my favorite guests, either.

After they were at Charlie's, I went on my secret mission, driving all the way to Port Angeles, and then Seattle.

I'd memorized the appropriate maps while I was tracking down the address Alice had left behind that didn't exist online and I had no problem finding my way.

To say that it wasn't a nice neighborhood would be an understatement. The most nondescript of all the Cullens' cars was still outrageous on this street. During my human years, I would have locked the doors and driven away as fast as I dared. As it was, I was a little fascinated. I tried to imagine Alice in this place for any reason, and failed.

The buildings - all three stories, all narrow, all leaning slightly as if bowed by the pounding rain - were mostly old houses divided up into multiple apartments. It was hard to tell what color the peeling paint was supposed to be. Everything had faded to shades of gray. A few of the buildings had businesses on the first floor: a dirty bar with the windows painted black, a psychic's supply store with neon hands and tarot cards, glowing fitfully on the door, a tattoo parlor, and a daycare with duct tape holding the broken front window together. There were no lamps on inside any of the rooms, though it was grim enough outside that the humans should have needed the light. I could hear the low mumbling of voices in the distances,; it sounded like TV.

There were a few people about, two shuffling through the rain in opposite directions and one sitting on the shallow porch of a boarded-up cut-rate law office, reading a wet newspaper and whistling. The sound was much too cheerful for the setting.

I was so bemused by the carefree whistler, I didn't realize at first that the abandoned building was right where the address I was looking for should exist. There were no numbers on the dilapidated, but the tattoo parlor beside it was just two numbers off.

I pulled up the curb and idled for a second. I was getting into that dump one way or another, but how to do so without the whistler noticing me? I could park the next street over and come through the back... There might be more witnesses on that side. Maybe the rooftops? Was it dark enough for that kind of thing?

"Hey, lady," the whistler called to me.

I rolled the passenger window down as if I couldn't hear him.

The man laid his paper aside, his clothes surprised me, now that I could see them. Under his long ragged duster, he was a little too well dressed. There was no breeze to give me the scent, but the sheen on his dark red shirt looked like silk. His crinkly black hair was tangled and wild, but his dark skin was smooth and perfect, his teeth white and straight. A contradiction.

"Maybe you shouldn't park that care there, lady," he said. "It might not be here when you get back."

"Thanks for the warning," I said.

I shut off the engine and got out. Perhaps my whistling friend could give me the answers I needed faster than breaking and entering. I opened my big gray umbrella - not that I cared, really about protecting the long cashmere sweater-dress I wore. It was what a human would do.

The man squinted through the rain at my face, and then his eyes widened. He swallowed, and I heard his heart accelerate as I approached.

"I'm looking for someone," I began.

"I'm someone," he offered with a smile. "What can I do for you, beautiful?"

"Are you J. Jenks?" I asked.

"Oh," he said, and his expression changed from anticipation to understanding. He got to his feet and examined me with narrowed eyes. "Why're you looking for J?"

"That's my business." Besides, I didn't have a clue. "Are you J?"

"No."

We faced each other for a long moment while his sharp eyes ran up and down the fitted pearl gray sheath I wore. His gaze finally it to my face. "You don't look like the usual customer."

"I'm probably not the usual," I admitted. "But I do need to see him as soon as possible."

"I'm not sure what to do," he admitted.

"Why don't you tell me your name?"

He grinned. "Max."

"Nice to meet you, Max. Now, why don't you tell me what you do for _the usual_?"

His grin became a frown. "Well, J's usual clients don't look a thing like you. Your kind doesn't bother with the downtown office. You just go straight up to his fancy office in the skyscraper."

I repeated the other address I had, making the list of numbers a question.

"Yeah, that's the place," he said, suspicious again. "How come you didn't go there?"

"This wasn't the address I was given - by a very dependable source."

"If you were up to any good, you wouldn't be here."

I pursed my lips. I'd never been much good at bluffing, but Alice hadn't left me a lot of alternatives. "Maybe I'm not up to any good."

Max's face turned apologetic. "Look, lady-"

"Bella."

"Right. Bella. See, I need this job. J pays me pretty good to mostly just hang out here all day. I want to help you, I do, but - and of course I'm speaking hypothetically, right? Or off the record, or whatever works for you - but if I pass somebody through that could get him in trouble, I'm out of work. Do you see my problem?"

I thought for a minute, chewing on my lip. "You've never seen anyone like me here before? Well, _sort of_ like me. My sister is a lot shorter than me, and she has dark spiky black hair."

"J knows your sister?"

"I think so."

Max pondered this for a moment. I smiled at him, and his breathing stuttered. "Tell you what I'll do. I'll give J a call and describe you to him. Let him make the decision."

What did J. Jenks know? Would my description mean something to him? That was a troubling thought.

"My last name is Cullen," I told Max, wondering if that was too much information. I was starting to get irritated with Alice. Did I really have to be quite this blind? She could have given me one or two more words...

"Cullen, got it."

I watched as he dialed, easily picking out the number. Well, I could call J. Jenks myself if this didn't work.

"Hey, J, it's Max. I know I'm never supposed to call you at this number except in an emergency..."

_Is there an emergency?_ I heard heard faintly from the other end.

"Well, not exactly. It's this girl who wants to see you..."

_I fail to see the emergency in that. Why didn't you follow normal procedure?_

"I didn't follow normal procedure 'cause she don't look like any kind of normal-"

_Is she a badge?_

"No-"

_You can't be sure about that. Does she look like one of Kubarev's - ?_

"No - let me talkm okay? She says you know her sister or something."

_Not likely. What does she look like?_

"She looks like..." His eyes ran from my face to my shoes appreciatively. "Well, she looks like a freaking supermodel, that's what she looks like." I smiled and he winked at me, then went on. "Rocking body, pale as a sheet, dark brown hair almost to her waist, needs a good night's sleep - any of this sounding familiar?"

_No, this doesn't. I'm not happy that you let your weakness for pretty women interrupt - _

"Yeah, so I'm a sucker for the pretty ones, what's wrong with that? I'm sorry I bothered you, man. Just forget it."

"Name," I whispered.

"Oh right. Wait," Max said. "She says her name is Bella Cullen. That help?"

There was a beat of dead silence, and then the voice on the other end was abruptly screaming. Max's whole expression changed; all the joking vanished and his lips went pale.

"Because you didn't ask!" Max yelled back, panicked.

There was another pause while J collected himself.

_Beautiful and pale?_ J asked, a tiny bit calmer.

"I said that, didn't I?"

Beautiful and pale? What did this man know about vampires? Was he one of us himself? I wasn't prepared for that kind of confrontation. I gritted my teeth. What had Alice gotten me into?

Max waited for a minute through another volley of shouted insults and instructions and then glanced at me with eyes that were almost frightened. "But you only meet downtown clients on Thursdays - okay, okay! On it." He slid his phone shut.

"He wants to see me?" I asked brightly.

Max glowered. "You could have told me you were a priority client."

"I didn't know I was."

"I thought you might be a cop," he admitted. "I mean, you don't look like a cop. But you act kind of weird, beautiful."

I shrugged.

"Mafia?" he guessed.

"Nope, not exactly. And neither is my husband."

Max cussed under his breath. "Married. Can't catch a break."

I smiled.

"Diamond smuggling?"

"Please! Is this the kind of people you usually deal wityh, Max? Maybe you need a new job."

I had to admit, I was enjoying myself a little. I hadn't interacted with humans much besides Charlie and Sue and my new guests. It was entertaining to watch him flounder. I was also pleased at how easy it was not to kill him.

"You've got to be involved in something big. _And_ bad," he mused.

"It's not really like that."

"That's what they all say. But who else needs papers? Or can afford to pay J's prices for them, I should say. None of my business, anyway," he said, and then muttered the word _married_ again.

He gave me an entirely new address with basic directions, and then watched me drive away with suspicious, regretful eyes.

* * *

At this point, I was ready for almost anything. So I thought Max must have given me the wrong address as a test. Or maybe the lair was subterranean, underneath this very commonplace strip mall nestled up against a wooded hill in a nice family neighborhood.

I pulled into an open spot and looked up at a tastefully subtle sign that read JASON SCOTT, ATTORNEY AT LAW.

The office inside was beige with celery green accents, inoffensive and unremarkable. There was no scent of vampire here, and that helped me relax. Nothing but unfamiliar human. A fish tank was set into the wall, and a blandly pretty blonde receptionist sat behind the desk.

"Hello," she greeted me. "How can I help you?"

"I'm here to see Mr. Scott."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Not exactly."

She smirked a little. "It could be a while, then. Why don't you have a seat while I -"

_April!_ a man's demanding voice squawked from the phone on her desk. _I'm expecting a Ms. Cullen shortly._

I smiled and pointed to myself.

_Send her in immediately. Do you understand? I don't care what it's interrupting._

I could hear something else in his voice besides his impatience. Stress. Nerves.

"She's just arrived," April said as soon as she could speak.

_What? Send her in! What are you waiting for?_

"Right away, Mr. Scott!" She got to her feet, fluttering her hands as she led the way down a short hallway, offering me coffee or tea or anything else I might have wanted.

"Here you are," she said as she ushered me through the door into a power office, complete with heavy wooden desk and vanity wall.

"Close the door behind you," a raspy tenor voice ordered.

I examined the man behind the desk while April made a hasty retreat. He was short and balding, probably around fifty-five, with a paunch. He wore a red silk tie with a blue-and-white-striped shirt, and his navy blazer hung over the back of his chair. He was also trembling, blanched to a sickly paste color, with sweat beading on his forehead; I imagined an ulcer churning away under the spare tire.

J recovered himself and rose unsteadily from his chair from his chair. He reached his hand across the desk.

"Mrs. Cullen. What an absolute delight."

I crossed to him and shook his hand quickly once. He cringed slightly at my cold skin but did not seem particularly surprised by it.

"Mr. Jenks. Or do you prefer Scott?"

He winced again. "Whatever you wish, of course."

"How about you call me Bella, and I'll call you J?"

"Like old friends," he agreed, mopping a silk handkerchief across his forehead. He gestured for me to have a seat and took his own. "I must ask, am I finally meeting Mr. Jasper's lovely wife?"

I weighed that for a second. So this man knew Jasper, not Alice. Knew him, and seemed afraid of him, too. "His sister-in-law, actually."

He pursed his lips, as if he were grasping for meanings just as desperately as I was.

"I trust Mr. Jasper is in good health?" he asked carefully.

"I'm sure he is in excellent health. He's on an extended vacation at the moment."

This seemed to clear up some of J's confusion. He nodded to himself and templed his fingers. "Just so. You should have come to the main office. My assistants there would have put you straight through to me - no need to go through less hospitable channels."

I just nodded. I wasn't sure why Alice had given me the ghetto address.

"Ah, well, you're here now. What can I do for you?"

"Papers," I said, trying to make my voice sound like I knew what I was talking about.

"Certainly," I agreed at once. "Are we talking birth certificates, death certificates, drivers' licenses, passports, social security cards...?"

I took a deep breath and smiled. I owed Max big time.

And then my smile faded. Alice had sent me here for a reason, and I was sure it was to protect Renesmee. Her last gift to me. The one thing she would know I needed.

The only reason Renesmee would need a forger was if she was running. And the only reason Renesmee would be running was if we had lost.

If Edward and I were running with her, she wouldn't need these documents right away. I was sure IDs were something Edward knew how to get his hands on or make himself, and I was sure he knew ways to escape without them. We could swim with her across an ocean.

If we were around to save her.

And all the secrecy to keep this out of Edward's head. Because there was a good chance that everything he knew, Aro would know. If we lost, Aro would certainly get the information he craved before he destroyed Edward.

It was as I had suspected. We couldn't win. But we must have a good shot at killing Demetri before we lost, giving Renesmee the chance to run.

My still heart felt like a boulder in my chest - a crushing weight. All my hope faded like fog in the sunshine. My eyes pricked. Who would I put this on? Charlie? But he was so defenselessly human. And how would I get Renesmee to him? He was not going to be anywhere close to that fight. So that left one person. There really had never been anyone else.

I'd thought this through so quickly that J didn't notice my pause.

"Two birth certificates, two passports, one driver's license," I said in a low, strained tone.

If he noticed the change in my expression, he pretended otherwise.

"The names?"

"Jacob... Wolfe. And... Vanessa Wolfe." Nessie seemed like an okay nickname for Vanessa. Jacob would get a kick out of the Wolfe thing.

His pen scratched swiftly across a legal pad. "Middle names?"

"Just put something generic in."

"If you prefer. Ages?"

"Twenty-seven for the man, five for the girl." Jacob could pull it off. He was a beast. And at the rate Renesmee was growing, I'd better estimate high. He could be her stepfather...

"I'll need pictures if you prefer finished documents," J said, interrupting my thoughts. "Mr. Jasper usually liked to finish them himself."

Well, that explained why J didn't know what Alice looked like.

"Hold on," I said.

This was luck. I had several family pictures shoved in my wallet, and the perfect one - Jacob holding Renesmee on the front porch steps - was only a month old. Alice had given it to me just a few days before... Oh. Maybe there wasn't that much luck involved after all. Alice knew I had this picture. Maybe she'd even had some dim flash that I would need it before she gave it to me.

"Here you go."

J examined the picture for the moment. "Your daughter is very like you."

I tensed. "She's more like her father."

"Who is not this man." He touched Jacob's face.

My eyes narrowed, and new sweat beads popped out on J's shiny head.

"No. That is a very close friend of the family."

"Forgive me," he mumbled, and the pen began scratching again. "How soon will you need the documents?"

"Can I get them in a week?"

"That's a rush order. It will cost twice as - but forgive me. I forgot with whom I was speaking."

Clear, he knew Jasper.

"Just give me a number."

He seemed hesitant to say it aloud, though I was sure, having dealt with Jasper, he must have known that price wasn't really an object. Not even taking into consideration the bloated accounts that existed all over the world with the Cullens' various names on them, there was enough cash stashed all over the house to keep a small country afloat for a decade; it reminded me of the way there were always a hundred fishbooks in the back of any drawer at Charlie's house. I doubted anyone would even notice the small stack I'd removed in preparation for today.

J wrote the price down on the bottom of the legal pad.

I nodded calmly. I had more than that with me. I unclasped my bag again and counted out the right amount - I had it all paper-clipped into five-thousand-dollar increments, so it took no time at all.

"There."

"Ah, Bella, you don't really have to give me the entire sum now. It's customary for you to save half to ensure delivery."

I smiled wanly at the nervous man. "But I trust you, J. Besides, I'll give you a bonus - the same again when I get the documents."

"That's not necessary, I assure you."

"Don't worry about it." It wasn't like I could take it with me. "So I'll meet you here next week at the same time?"

He gave me a pained look. "Actually, I prefer to make such transactions in places unrelated to my various businesses."

"Of course, I'm sure I'm not doing this the way you expect."

"I'm used to having no expectations when it comes to the Cullen family." He grimaced and then quickly composed his face again. "Shall we meet a week from tonight at the Pacifico? It's on Union Lake, and the food is exquisite."

"Perfect." Not that I would be joining him for dinner. He actually wouldn't like it much if I did.

I rose and shook his hand again. This time he didn't flinch. But he did seem to have some new worry on his mind. His mouth was pinched up, his back tense.

"Will you have trouble with the deadline?" I asked.

"What?" He looked up, taken off guard by my question. "The deadline? Oh, no. No worries at all. I will certainly have your documents done on time."

It would have been nice to have Edward here, so that I would know what J's real worries were. I sighed. Keeping secrets from Edward was bad enough; having to be away from him was almost too much.

"Then I'll see you in one week."


	14. Chapter 13: Sarox: Declared

**ATTENTION**

_Santa Claus will be involved briefly to bring a useful gift to the Cullens and their friends. Since the original Kingdom Hearts has already featured the appearance of Santa Claus from _The Nightmare Before Christmas_, this will _the_ Santa to appear in this chapter._

_Enjoy_

* * *

SAROX

The days continued in patterns for the Cullens. Bella continued her practices with her powers and fighting skills; she was getting better at holding her shield to an extended amount of time, and her fighting techniques were improving. Some of us had offered to help her practice, but she declined. "If I train with a human, there's no guarantee I won't lose control and I don't want that," she discouraged. It was amazing to see how she could withstand so many practices to such limits that usually wore out a human. Even me. But Carlisle explained that vampires could only get tired mentally, not physically. It was still amazing to watch her work so hard. And for a good reason. She wanted to protect those she loved wholeheartedly, something most of us would do for each other. Or at least most of the people I knew.

The Cullens didn't like our idea of witnessing very much, because most of us were human, and their world upheld a law to prevent human beings from ever finding out about the existence of vampires. And another one that prohibited vampires from joining forces with werewolves. They broke that law, and would soon be accused of two more. King Mickey was convinced that since we came from other worlds, the laws wouldn't really apply to us. It wasn't like the Volturi had contact with the other worlds. And I was willing to bet that the amount of Keyblade masters would overwhelm them, specifically their leader, Aro, who, as I heard, was consumed with collecting more power to hold his position. With this many of us holding Keyblades of our own, he would definitely want to preserve our lives until a decision was made. I couldn't imagine what that decision would be, but I hoped it would result in a peaceful way.

* * *

It was Christmas Day in Forks, and Bella had agreed to bring Nessie, Edward, Jacob, Marlene, and I over to her father for the celebration. I had asked to let Max and PJ join the party, but Bella insisted that it would not be a good idea to let her father see two dog-faced teenagers walk around in his house. All of Jacob's pack were there, plus Sam, Emily, and Sue: Seth and Leah's mother. It was a big help to have them there in Charlie's little rooms, their huge, warm bodies wedged into corners around his sparsely decorated Christmas tree and overflowing his furniture. You could always count on werewolves to be buzzed about a coming fight, no matter how suicidal. The electricity of their excitement provided a nice current that covered the lack of spirit in Bella. Edward was so good at his acting that I wasn't sure if he was really faking it.

Nessie wore a golden locket Bella had given her a week ago. Edward gave her a small electronic device called "MP3 player", which according to their world's technology, could contain five thousand songs, and Edward had already inserted his favorites. Jacob braided a beautiful bracelet, which was a Quileute version to a promise ring. Edward gritted his teeth over Jacob's gift, but Bella was unchanged. It was as though she had grown comfortable to her daughter's relationship with her best friend.

While everyone put up a charade of celebrating Christmas, I looked out the window with Marlene hoping to see Santa Claus.

Dad had told me bedtime stories (which he never mentioned were his), one of them involved a young boy meeting Santa Claus in person. I was intrigued by the idea, though I never believed in Santa Claus until I touched the Keyblade for the first time.

Edward had already ordered a gift for Charlie. It showed up yesterday, and Charlie had spent all morning reading the thick instruction manual to his new sonar system.

I felt a little guilty for not giving any gifts to anyone, but Edward assured me that it didn't matter with the gifts. They wouldn't either way, and frankly, not many of them were into Christmas spirit.

Dinner was served by Sue, Leah and Seth's mother. The werewolves dug into the plates like crazy hounds, and I understood the reason. It was too delicious to resist, unless you were a vampire. Even Nessie ate a little. The only people who didn't join in were Edward and Bella, but Charlie had gotten used to their diet.

We finally left by the end of the evening. Bella, Edward, Jacob, and Marlene relaxed after we left. They were mentally worn out by the facade of Christmas spirit. I didn't pretend as much, but I still faked the enthusiasm to help keep up the charade. There were many, and more important things to be done than attending a Christmas party at a small wooden house. But Bella wanted to do it for her dad's sake. This might be the last time she got to see him, and she didn't want to let the chance pass.

She would've wanted to see her mom, too, but the gradual distance between them was too far, and she was described to be very fragile. She would fall apart even for the tiniest little problem. Bella hadn't seen her since she married Edward, which was three and a half months ago.

We were very quiet in the car. Nessie sat on Bella's lap, playing with her locket. Marlene and I looked out the window to look at the stars.

The scattered light fragments in the sky suddenly reminded me of an old story that Mom used to tell me during bedtime.

_"A long time ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light._

_Everyone loved it._

_Then they began to fight over it._

_They wanted the light for themselves, and darkness was born in their hearts._

_The darkness spread and devoured the light and many people's hearts. And eventually, the light disappeared._

_But small fragments of light survived in the hearts of children. And with these light fragments, they managed to rebuild the lost world._

_But the true light is still sleeping, deep in the darkness, which is why the worlds are still scattered, divided from each other._

_But there will be one day that the door to innermost darkness will open, and the true light will return."_

I considered telling Nessie the story. It was something worth passing down. Great-Grams had passed it down to Mom, and she passed it down to me. Maybe I should pass it down to Nessie.

There was nothing unusual about the outside of the Cullen house as we pulled into the meadow. Edward parked in front of the house. He and Bella exchanged a quick, wary glance before they got out of the car. Apparently, there was something going on inside that we couldn't hear with our human senses. Even Jacob's face turned careful and serious.

Marlene and I exchanged a quick, questionable look, and got out of the car.

"Alistair is gone," Edward murmured before they darted up the stairs.

Running as fast as we could, we were still five seconds behind. In the front room, we could hear the argument going on. Everyone was gathered in there, lining the walls. I could see Max, PJ, King Mickey, and Dad at the other side of the room. Esme, Kebi and Tia were the closest to the three vampires in the center; in the middle of the room, Amun was hissing at Carlisle and Benjamin.

Edward's jaw tightened and he moved quickly to Esme's side, towing Bella by the hand. We went to Max and PJ's side

"Amun, if you want to go, no one is forcing you to stay," Carlisle said calmly.

"You're stealing half my coven, Carlisle!" Amun shrieked, stabbing one finger at Benjamin. "Is that why you called me here? To _steal_ from me?"

Carlisle sighed, and Benjamin rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Carlisle picked a fight with the Volturi, endangered his whole family, just to lure me here to my death," Benjamin said sarcastically. "Be reasonable, Amun. I'm committed to do the right thing here - I'm not joining any other coven. You can do whatever you want, of course, as Carlisle has pointed out."

"This won't end well," Amun growled. "Alistair was the only sane one here. We should all be running."

"Think of who you're calling sane," Tia murmured in a quiet aside.

"We're all going to be slaughtered!"

"It's not going to come to a fight," Carlisle said in a firm voice.

"You say!"

His cowardice made me want to snarl.

"If it does, you can always switch sides, Amun. I'm sure the Volturi will appreciate your help."

Amun sneered at him. "Perhaps that _is_ the answer."

Carlisle's answer was soft and sincere. "I wouldn't hold that against you, Amun. We have been friends for a long time, but I would never ask you to die for me."

Amun's voice was more controlled, too. "But you're taking my Benjamin down with you."

Carlisle put his hand on Amun's shoulder, Amun shook it off.

"I'll stay, Carlisle, but it might be to your detriment. I _will_ join them if that's the road to survival. You're all fools to think that you can defy the Volturi." He scowled, then sighed, glanced at Renesmee and Bella, and added in an exasperated tone, "I will witness that the child has grown. That's nothing but the truth. Anyone would see that."

"That's all we've ever asked."

Amun grimaced, "But not all that you are getting, it seems." He turned on Benjamin. "I gave you life. You're wasting it."

_I don't like him, Edward,_ I thought to him harshly. He did not respond.

Benjamin's face looked extremely cold, cold as a statue. "It's a pity you couldn't replace my will with your own in the process; perhaps then you would have been satisfied with me."

Amun's eyes narrowed. He gestured abruptly to Kebi, and they stalked past us out the front door. I hoped he wouldn't turn on our human witnesses.

"Don't worry, he won't," he assured my thoughts, "he's sane enough to stay out of trouble." Then he whispered to Bella so quietly my human senses would've been too dull to hear clearly if anyone else were speaking. "He's not leaving, but he'll be keeping his distance even more from now on. He wasn't bluffing when he spoke of joining the Volturi."

"Why did Alistair go?" Bella whispered.

Everyone paid attention.

"No one can be positive; he didn't leave a note. From his mutters, it's been clear that he thinks a fight is inevitable. Despite his demeanor, he actually does care too much for Carlisle to stand with the Volturi. I suppose he decided the danger was too much." Edward shrugged.

Eleazar replied to his comment.

"From the sound of his mumblings, it was a bit more than that. We haven't spoken much of the Volturi agenda, but Alistair worried that no matter how decisively we can prove your innocence, the Volturi would not listen. He thinks they will find an excuse to achieve their goals here."

The vampires glanced uneasily at one another. Only the Romanian vampires flashed cold, half-smiles on their faces. I glanced at my father, His Majesty, and my friends. Apparently the idea of the Volturi manipulating their own sacrosanct law for personal gain was not exactly a popular idea.

Many began low discussions. Vladimir kept shooting glances in Bella and Edward's direction as he spoke with Stefan.

"I do so hope Alistair was right about this," Stefan murmured to Vladimir. "No matter the outcome, word will spread. It's time our world saw the Volturi for what they've become. They'll never fall if everyone believes this nonsense about them protecting our way of life."

"At least when we ruled, we were honest about what we were," Vladimir replied.

Stefan murmured nodded. "We never put on white hats and called ourselves saints."

"I'm thinking the time to fight has come," Vladimir said. "How can you imagine we'll ever find a better force to stand with? Another chance this good?"

"Nothing is impossible. Maybe someday - "

"We've been waiting for _fifteen hundred years_, Stefan. And they've only gotten stronger with the years." Vladimir paused and looked at Bella again, who was watching him, too. "If the Volturi win this conflict, they will leave with more power than they came with. With every conquest they add to their strengths. Think of what that newborn alone could give them and she is barely discovering her gifts. And the earth-mover, and the keyholders and the princesses." Vladimir nodded toward Benjamin, who stiffened, and then flashed a glance at us. "With their witch twins they have no need of the illusionist or the fire touch." His eyes moved to Zafrina, then Kate.

Stefan looked at Edward. "Nor is the mind reader necessary. But I see your point. Indeed, they will gain much if they win."

"More than we can afford to have them gain, wouldn't you agree?"

Stefan sighed. "I think I must agree. And that means..."

"That we must stand against them while there is still hope."

"If we can just cripple them, even, expose them..."

"Then, someday, others will finish the job."

"And our long vendetta will be repaid. At last."

They locked eyes for a moment and then murmured in unison. "It seems the only way."

"So we fight," Stefan said.

They exchanged smiles, although I could see that they were torn by self-preservation and will of revenge.

"We fight," Vladimir agreed.

The Romanians' conversation became clarified to us that fighting would be inevitable. They sounded frightening when Carlisle explained about them, especially the twins, whom were described as high ranked members of the guard. But if there was a chance to survive this battle at all, we would need as many allies on our side.

"We will fight, too," Tia said, her usually grave voice more solemn than ever. "We believe the Volturi will overstep their authority. We have no wish to belong to them." Her eyes lingered on Benjamin.

Benjamin grinned and threw an impish glance toward the Romanians. "Apparently, I'm a hot commodity. It appears I have to win the right to be free."

"This won't be the first time I've fought to keep myself from a king's rule," Garrett said in a teasing tone. He walked over and clapped Benjamin on the back. "Here's to freedom from oppression."

"We stand with Carlisle," Tanya said. "And we fight with him."

"We have not decided," Peter said. He looked down at Charlotte; her lips were set in dissatisfaction. It looked like she'd made her decision.

"The same goes for me," Randall said.

"And me," Mary added.

King Mickey stepped forward. "We will fight with the Cullens as we promised," he declared, then added, "it's the right thing to do. And we will do what we can to help. Of course, I can only speak on my behalf. I will notify the others tonight and give them the same choice. If they choose to leave, then I'm afraid I cannot neglect them that wish."

It felt wrong to hear it, but I couldn't argue. Even Mickey himself seemed a bit disgusted by what he just said.

"We will not ask you to stay, even for fighting," Carlisle assured him.

He knelt down and put his cold hand on Mickey's shoulder. Mickey assured him by resting his own hand on his shoulder.

"The packs will fight with the Cullens," Jacob said suddenly. "We're not afraid of vampires," he added with a smirk.

"Children," Peter muttered.

"Infants," Randall corrected.

Jacob grinned tauntingly.

"Well, I'm in, too," Maggie said, shrugging out from under Siobhan's restraining hand. "I know truth is on Carlisle's side. I can't ignore that."

Siobhan stared at Maggie with worried eyes. "Carlisle," she said as if they were alone, ignoring the suddenly formal feel of the gathering, the unexpected outburst of declarations, "I don't want this to come to a fight."

"Nor do I, Siobhan. You know that's the last thing I want." He half-smiled. "Perhaps you should concentrate on keeping it peaceful."

"You know that won't help," she said.

"It couldn't hurt," Carlisle said.

Siobhan rolled her eyes. "Shall I visualize the outcome I desire?" she asked sarcastically.

Carlisle was openly grinning now. "If you don't mind."

"Then there is no need for my coven to declare itself, is there?" she retorted. "Since there is no possibility of fighting." She put her hand back on Maggie's shoulder, pulling her closer in.

Siobhan's mate, Liam, stood silent and expressionless.

Almost everyone else in the room looked mystified by Carlisle and Siobhan's clearly joking exchange, but they didn't express themselves.

That was the end of the night's speeches. The group slowly dispersed, some off to hunt, some to spend time with Carlisle's books or televisions or computers.

We went back to the cottages in La Push. On the way, I felt incredibly calm by the synchronizing sound of Marlene's humming. She was a very talented singer; Giselle and Gabriella admitted that she was as gifted as they were. It made them more connected as "sisters", as Giselle continuously commented. Perhaps it was what we needed to lighten up the mood around here.

If only it would help clear the situation.

_Merry Christmas!_

I looked at Marlene, and she met my gaze with a confused expression. Then we turned to the others, and they had the same curious faces. Yes, we had all heard someone shout "Merry Christmas". In that moment, I heard bells dangle back and forth over our heads. We looked up and saw a beautiful red sleight hovering twenty feet above, pulled by three reindeers wrapped by steady strings around their torsos and mouths. I traced the strings to the center that controlled them... and spotted a round grandfather dressed in red, warm clothes made specifically to withstand chilly weathers. On the back of the sleight was a giant brown sack that looked like it could contain ten people at a time. Then I realized, it was _him_.

Santa Claus.

I glanced at Dad, and saw sparkles in his eyes, despite we were in the dark.

The sleight glided downward slowly until it met ground, and Santa pulled his deers to a stop about ten yards away from where we were standing.

"Well, if it ain't Santa Claus," Dad said delightfully. "Come to deliver gifts, eh?"

"Of course, Santa's job is never done, you know," he answered, and then exclaimed, "Merry Christmas to everybody!"

His Majesty took a step forward. "So how has work been?"

"Never better. Just delivered gifts to your friends at the lodges and the Quileutes: I was just on my way to drop the presents to the Cullens when I ran into you guys. They have been on my nice-list for a while, you see."

A gift for Bella, Edward, and Nessie. It sounded good, if the situation was different. Bella didn't seem like the kind of person that liked presents, but perhaps Nessie would like some to cheer her up.

I put aside the unnecessary thoughts. What gift would make the day better for everyone anyway? Santa Claus was one of the mythical people that I most believed in, but the depressive situation can hardly be lifted by Christmas presents. If it could, Bella and Edward would've relaxed when they were visiting Charlie today.

"I don't think you can cheer them up with your gifts, Santa," I thought out loud, and then gasped. "Uh... Um, I'm sorry. I-I was... thinking out loud, and..."

His smile did not fade. "Oh, don't worry. I know the perfect gift to cheer 'em up," he said confidently and continued. "But first..."

He dropped the strings to his side, unbound his sack and searched inside with one arm. And then, he pulled out a pair of red hand knitted mittens and threw them to Dad.

"Wow! Thanks so much, Santa," he said casually, although I doubted he wasn't excited - Dad had always been a Christmas spirit, and believed in Santa wholeheartedly.

Santa reached into his sack again.

Max received a red, stylish skateboard; and PJ got a golden storybook, which he looked with adoring eyes; King Mickey got a glowing five-pointed star, which Santa said was "magically shrunken," and told him to hang it somewhere when he returns to his castle; Marlene got a beautiful snow-globe with a sleight flying around, surrounded by flowing clouds and snow.

"And here's for you, my boy," he said and reached into the bag again. But instead of a box or a wrapped-up present, he pulled out a sphere of swirling white lights encircling a small sun in the center. Mysterious and mesmerizing. I could hardly move my glance from it.

I didn't notice that Santa was smiling. "I believe when the time comes, you'll be needing it," he said. "It's a Star Globe."

"Star Globe?" King Mickey almost screamed in shock. "I've read about them. They are the essence of light."

I didn't know what that meant nor did I care.

"What does that mean, Your Majesty?" Max asked, his forehead creased.

"Whoever uses it brings out the light in their heart. It can also enhance the power of light in times of need."

Santa nodded. "Why, Master Yen Sid's taught you well, Your Majesty. _Mickey_," he complimented, and then turned to me. "Sarox, I believe the Cullens will be going through a rough time when the Volturi arrives. And since there's only so much I can do, I believe this globe will help."

I nodded lightly. So, Santa was aware of the Cullens' situation, and wanted to help.

He lowered the globe till it faced my chest. The little universe was mesmerizing beyond imagination that I had to try and touch it. There was no solidity to hold on to, but mysterious warmth was impossible to escape my touch.

Unexpectedly, the little sun burst covering the entire globe and the rest of the little stars. In that instant, my chest emitted a glow as though it was responding to the sphere.

The sphere faded out of existence as I felt the light on my chest grow brighter; the heat grew warmer without burning my skin. Then, the heat faded and my chest was glowing normally again before it disappeared altogether.

"Beware, Sarox, the Star Globe has improved your powers beyond your imagination," Santa instructed me, his face turned serious, "but the magic only lasts for a few days; and if you use the power furthermore, it will run out even faster. So, you have to be careful with it."

I nodded. The Star Globe was only a temporary power boost; if I used it for unnecessary purposes, the power will run out even faster. And my light was the drive force to the Keyblade. I would have to restrain from using it until the Volturi comes.

"Thank you, Santa," I said. "I'll do my best."

He smiled and nodded in agreement, and then turned to Marlene. "And Marlene, the other princesses are making a perfect gift for Renesmee as we speak. I think it's best if you go join them."

"Really?" she asked, surprised.

He nodded. "They're waiting for you," he informed her, and then he grabbed the strings again and rode off into the night sky. We waved goodbye.

"Merry Christmas!" he exclaimed once again.

* * *

By the time we were back at the cottages, the six princesses were all gathered around a bonfire with their mates. Princess Eilonwy had a golden orb float around her as they held their private meeting.

Rapunzel was the first to see us.

"Hey, they're back," she told the others.

They turned inour direction and stood up to welcome us back. Marlene walked to their circle, and the princesses welcomed her with open arms.

"I met Santa on our way back," Marlene told them. "He said you were making a present for Nessie."

"Oh, actually, we're still discussing on what to make for her," Gabriella corrected.

Giselle stepped forward and held up a sketch in her hands.

"We could make a lovely little dress," she suggested.

Marlene creased her face. Nessie was still growing, and by the time they made the dress, she would have grown too large to fit.

"I don't think that's a good idea," she said. "You see, Nessie is growing really fast. I'm afraid she'll be too big by the time we finish it."

Giselle lowered her hands, disappointed. Robert, her newlywed husband, rested his arm on her shoulders for comfort. Her disappointment faded quickly by his touch.

Garnet was thoughtful for a moment.

"How about a music box?" she suggested. "We can play it with our own song."

"Good idea," Layla replied delightfully.

The other girls agreed to the idea. Their enthusiasm made the rest of us look like air.

"Then, let's do it," Marlene said. "Merlin can create the box for us."

King Mickey stepped forward. "It's a very good idea that you have, but before you do that," his smile faded to a serious expression. "I have something very important to say to everyone." He then turned to Dad. "Sora, would you please find Donald and Goofy and tell them to gather everyone around the bonfire?"

Dad nodded, and then rushed for the lodge Donald and Goofy were living in. I ran after him.

"I'll help you."

It did not take long before everyone was gathered outside the cottages. King Mickey had settled on an open area between the woods and the lodges. Goofy, and Donald stood beside him as representatives, Uncle Riku, Max, and PJ stood by his left side. Marlene had her parents wrapped around her. My parents stood closely beside me. We were closest to the king.

"Everyone," he began, "there's something you need to know. One of the vampire witnesses - Alistair - has fled." They all stunned at the news.

He continued, "He left because he felt the Volturi coming. The number that he felt was too great, and he feared that our testimony would fail. Over the past few weeks, Carlisle Cullen had told me all that there was to know about them. In this world, they hold absolute power over the society of vampires. And their guard are very powerful vampires. If someone breaks a rule, they will surely bring forth the proper punishment on the guilty party.

"And now, the entire coven is coming for the Cullens. And even though we have come to witness, there is a great possibility that it's going to turn into a battle. Me and my acquaintances -" he flickered his eyes to Donald, Goofy, Uncle Riku, Max, and PJ quickly, and then back to the party, "- have chosen to stay and do what we have come for. Now, I must ask all of you to make a choice, because it's only fair to make your own decision rather than let me decide for all of you. Will you stay behind and fight, or leave and hope for the better? Everyone, please choose. No matter what you decide, you have my utmost respect."

Everyone turned to each other and discussed quietly for a moment. I feared most of them would definitely leave at first chance. Why would they decide to help and die for the Cullens, anyway?

We had only asked them to come and testify, not to face death. I was ready to accept that most of them would decide to leave and save their own lives. At any moment, they would say their decisions out loud.

Giselle and Robert were the first to step out from the crowd. Perfect, Robert was the only one in here who had no useful skills at all. He and Giselle had just started a new life with his daughter, Morgan. Who would take care of Morgan if Robert or Giselle weren't around?

"Giselle and I have just started a life together," Robert began. "We have a daughter, who's only six years old. And she needs her parents by her side." He looked to Giselle for a moment, and then back to His Majesty. "But I have been taught that even in the darkest moment, things can turn out okay if you believe it. If I run with Giselle now, I would be a coward again. I want to believe that the power of faith can bring us through anything. That's why I'll stay."

I wasn't sure if I was stunned, but my eyes were completely frozen in his direction. His words were the complete opposite of what I had imagined.

Giselle smiled at him, and then spoke her mind. "Marlene and the other princesses are like sisters to me. I can't just walk away knowing that she needs my help. And right now, the Volturi are the ones making a mistake. The Cullens have something very precious to them, just like Robert and I do. That's why," she called the Keyblade into her hand, "I will help them protect it."

Taran and Eilonwy stepped forward; he raised his hand and called his Keyblade.

"If this is what becomes of the trial, then I shall fight," he said determined.

"Yes, we do what is right here, and right now, the Volturi are doing wrong," Eilonwy added. "We will stay and fight if the situation forces us to."

Rapunzel and Eugene exchanged looks, and then spoke their part. "We can't turn away from the truth," Rapunzel declared. "We will witness for the Cullens."

Eugene sighed, but there was no disappointment in his voice. He held out his hand and summoned his Keyblade.

"Rapunzel has spoken on my part," he said. "I, too, will fight for the Cullens."

Troy and Gabriella shared intense looks, their hands clung tight on each other's.

"Gabriella has come to help," Troy said for both of them. "Wherever she goes, I'll follow. That's why I'll stay with her."

"I, too, will stay and fight," Zidane declared, and then Garnet interjected. "Yes, and so will I."

Merlin sighed and shook his head in disbelief. "Silly little children. Then I guess I'd better stay and make sure you go home alive, wouldn't I? After all, a wizard can be of much help."

I heard Max and PJ chuckle quietly. Merlin had already made up his mind, and they knew that.

"We will stand for the Cullen family," Layla began her speech.

Will stepped forward and grabbed her hand. "There's no way a hero would run from danger when he has the power to face it," he declared bravely.

Marlene looked to her parents in anxiety. Her mother met her gaze with the same expression. "I doubt there's anything that could persuade you to leave, is there?" she muttered to her daughter. Marlene answered her question with a large grin across her face. She smiled back.

Dyne, her father, shook his head with the same grin on his face. "We will stay and help, too," he declared for all three of them.

And then, everyone turned to us, the last people to make a choice. I looked at my mother, she flashed a bright, beautiful grin at me; then turned to my father, he had the same expression. I received the silent message.

"Your Majesty," Dad spoke to the King. "You have known me for many years. I'm not the type of person who runs away from trouble. So I'll stay."

Mom took over. "No matter the odds, we will willingly stand by the Cullens and do what is right."

There was no need for me to speak; they had already spoken on my behalf.


	15. Chapter 14: Bella: Last Minute

BELLA CULLEN

There was nothing left now but waiting.

For days, Edward and Carlisle stayed in the clearing where Alice had seen the Volturi arrive.

We could only imagine that the Volturi would be tracking either Edward or Carlisle. I wondered if it would surprise them that their prey didn't run. Would that make them wary? I couldn't imagine the Volturi ever feeling a need for caution.

Though I was - hopefully - invisible to Demetri, I stayed with Edward. Of course. We only had a few hours left to be together.

Edward and I had not had a last grand scene of farewell, nor did I plan one. To speak the word was to make it final. It would be the same as typing the words _The End_ on the last page of a manuscript. So we did not say our goodbyes, and we stayed very close to each other, always touching. Whatever end found us, it would not find us separated.

We set up tents for Renesmee, and our human and anthropomorphic guests a few yards back into the protective forest.

It started to snow again the night before New Year's Eve. This time, the tiny flakes did not dissolve into the stony ground of the clearing. While Renesmee and Jacob slept - Jacob snoring so loudly I wondered how Renesmee didn't wake - the snow made a first thin icing over the earth, then built into thicker drifts. By the time the sun rose, the scene from Alice's vision was complete. Edward and I held hands as we stared across the glittering white field, and neither of us spoke.

Through the early morning, the human and anthropomorphic emerged from their tents and gathered with the vampires, their eyes bearing mute evidence of their preparations - a rainbow of different colors. Soon, we were all together, we could hear the wolves moving in the woods. Jacob emerged from his tent, leaving Renesmee still sleeping, to join them.

Edward and Carlisle were arraying the others into a loose formation, our witnesses to the sides like galleries.

The vampires hunted before they arrived, but Sarox's crowd decided to keep a short distance just in case, with my family standing in between them. It seemed safer that way, which I agreed. When I got a simple paper cut in my human life, Jasper succumbed to his blood lust and lost control in an instant before they calmed him down. Friend or no friend, it would be safer to avoid a blood bath, which made me now wonder why I even agreed to let them join us in the first place. If one of them got hurt, some of our vampire friends would lose control of their thirst and launch for the strong blood scent. And we did not have time to turn against each other.

Just one mistake and it would be the end for all of us.

But it was too late to tell them to run now. There was no time left. We could only look forward now and try to think positively and hoped that no blood would be shed, even if the chance was at smallest.

I watched from a distance, waiting by the tent for Renesmee to wake . When she did, I helped her dress in the clothes I'd carefully picked out two days before. Clothes that looked frilly and feminine but that were actually sturdy enough to not show any wear - even if a person wore them while riding a giant werewolf through a couple of states. Over her jacket I put on a black leather backpack that I took from Alice and Jasper's room with the documents, the money, the clue to where they should go, and my love notes for her and Jacob, Charlie and Renée. She was strong enough that it was no burden to her.

Her eyes were huge as she read the agony on my face. But she had guessed enough not ask me what I was doing.

"I love you," I told her. "More than anything."

"I love you, too, Momma," she answered. She touched the locket at her neck, which now held a tiny photo of her, Edward, and me. "We'll always be together."

"In our hearts we'll always be together," I corrected in a whisper as quiet as a breath. "But when the time comes today, you have to leave me."

Her eyes widened, and she touched her hand to my cheek. The silent _no_ was louder than if she'd shouted it.

I fought to swallow; my throat felt swollen. "Will you do it for me? Please?"

She pressed her fingers harder to my face. _Why?_

"I can't tell you," I whispered. "But you'll understand soon. I promise."

In my head, I saw Jacob's face.

I nodded, then pulled her fingers away. "Don't think about it," I breathed into her ear. "Don't tell Jacob until I tell you to run, okay?"

This she understood. She nodded, too.

I took from my pocket one last detail.

While packing Renesmee's things, an unexpected sparkle of color had caught my eye. A chance ray of sun through the skylight had hit the jewels on the ancient precious box stuffed high overhead on a shelf in an untouched corner. I considered it for a moment and then shrugged. After putting together Alice's clues, I couldn't hope that the coming confrontation would be resolved peacefully. But why not try to start things out as friendly as possible? I asked myself. What could it hurt? So I guess I must have had some hope left after all - blind, senseless hope - because I'd scaled the shelves and retrieved Aro's wedding present to me.

Now I fastened the thick old rope around my neck and felt the weight of the enormous diamond nestle into the hollow of my throat.

"Pretty," Renesmee whispered. Then she wrapped her arms like a vise around my neck. I squeezed her against my chest. Interlocked this way, I carried her out of the tent and to the clearing.

Edward cocked one eyebrow as I approached, but otherwise did not remark on my accessory or Renesmee's. He just put his arms tight around us both.

Marlene and Sarox approached us with their parents; the other princesses and their mates were right behind them. I scanned their appearances, and then realized that Marlene was carrying a small white box in her hands. It was created with perfectly round sides, accompanied by golden edges encircling the device. Some of the golden lines formed a wavy pattern on the body. The lid displayed an wide elegant circle, connected by four smaller circles on the sides. The center of the lid stored a pink crystal; six other multiple colored crystals shined on the edges.

The seven colors caught my eye. Crystal pink, emerald green, pearl white, aqua blue, deep blue, golden yellow, and scarlet red. The colors of rainbow. It made the box look mesmerizing and glorious. Renesmee touched my chin. She was captured by the box, too.

Marlene took a step forward, her smile was as gentle as ever. Sarox was not far behind, but he relaxed. Her parents looked anxious, but made no move. "Bella. Edward," she said, and lifted the box to her shoulder height. "This is a gift to Renesmee from the seven princesses. We know it's too late, but we wanted to make her a gift anyway."

I fought back a sigh. We were on the edge of doom; and here we were, accepting an unnecessary gift. I knew they meant well, though.

Edward accepted it with a generous smile. "Thank you so much, Marlene," he said.

She answered with a nod, and then returned to her family. Edward handed me the gift.

"They spent days working on designs and the song," he whispered to me. "Unnecessary as it seems, they do mean well."

I nodded. And then, with a deep sigh, he let us go.

I quickly opened Renesmee's leather backpack and stuffed in the little present, hoping that Edward wouldn't see what was inside.

We took our place, Renesmee climbing agilely onto my back to leave my hands free. I stood a few feet behind the front line made by Carlisle, Edward, Emmett, Rosalie, Tanya, Kate, Elezar, King Mickey, Riku, Donald, and Goofy. Close beside me were Zafrina and Benjamin; it was my job to protect them as long as I was able. They were our most offensive weapons. If the Volturi were the ones who could not see, even for a few moments, that would change everything.

Zafrina was rigid and fierce, with Senna almost a mirror image at her side. Benjamin sat on the ground, his palms pressed to the dirt, and muttered quickly about fault lines. Last he'd strewn piles of boulders in natural-looking, now snow-covered heaps all along the back of the meadow. They weren't enough to injure a vampire, but hopefully enough to distract one.

The vampire witnesses clustered to our left and right, some nearer than others - those who had declared themselves were the closest. I noticed Siobhan rubbing her temples, her eyes closed in concentration; was she humoring Carlisle? Trying to visualize a diplomatic resolution?

Standing in between the vampires and humans were Merlin, Sarox, Marlene, Max, PJ and their families; Merlin needed to transport as many people away as possible if the situation turned bad. Despite the fact that they were willing to die for us, we decided to keep as many of them safe in any possible way.

In the woods behind us, the invisible wolves were still and ready, we could only hear their heavy panting, their beating hearts, combined with all the others in the field.

The clouds rolled in, diffusing the light that it could have been morning or afternoon. Edward's eyes tightened as he scrutinized the view, and I was sure he was seeing this exact scene for the second time - the first time being Alice's vision. It would look just the same when the Volturi arrived. We only had minutes or seconds left now.

All our family and allies braced themselves.

From the forest, the huge russet Alpha wolf came forward to stand at my side; it must have been too hard for him to keep his distance from Renesmee when she was in such immediate danger.

Renesmee reached out to twine her fingers in the fur over his massive shoulder, and her body relaxed a little bit. She was calmer with Jacob close. I felt a tiny bit better, too. As long as Jacob was with Renesmee, she would be all right.

Without risking a glance behind, Edward reached back to me. I stretched my arm forward so that I could grip his hand. He squeezed his fingers.

Another minute ticked by, and I found myself straining to hear some pound of approach.

And then Edward stiffened and hissed low between his clenched teeth. His eyes focused on the forest due north of where we stood.

We stared where he did, and waited as the last seconds passed.


	16. Chapter 15: Bella: Bloodlust

BELLA CULLEN

They came with pageantry, with a kind of beauty.

They came in a rigid, formal formation. They moved together, but it was not a match; they flowed in perfect synchronicity from the trees - a dark, unbroken shape that seemed to hover a few inches above the snow, so smooth was the advance.

The outer perimeter was gray; the color darkened with each line of bodies until the heart of the formation was deepest black. Every face cowled, shadowed. The faint brushing sound of their feet was so regular it was like music, a complicated beat that never faltered.

At some sign I did not see - or perhaps there was no sign, only millennia of practice - the configuration folded outward. The motion was too stiff, too square to resemble the opening of a flower, though the color suggested that; it was the opening of a fan, graceful but very angular. the gray-cloaked figures spread to the flanks while the darker forms surged precisely forward in the center, each movement closely controlled.

Their progress was slow but deliberate, with no hurry, no tension, no anxiety. It was the pace of the invincible.

Thus far, the Volturi were too disciplined to show any emotion at all. They also showed no surprise at the giant wolf, or the humans, or the anthropomorphic creatures that stood in our midst. Or maybe they hadn't noticed. Yet.

And then, unexpectedly, two seconds later, the procession halted. The low music of perfectly synchronized movements turned to silence. The flawless discipline remained unbroken; the Volturi froze into absolute stillness as one. They stood about a hundred years away from us.

I thought they were caught by surprise by the number of humans and animal-headed creatures, which they probably were, but then I heard something else. The beating of large hearts beyond our crowd, closer than before, came up behind me and to the sides. I risked glances to the left and the right from the corners of my eyes to see what had stopped the Volturi advance.

The wolves had joined us.

On either side of our uneven line, the wolves branched out in long, bordering arms. I only spared a fraction of a second to note that there were more than ten wolves, to recognize the wolves I knew and the ones I'd never seen before. There were sixteen of them spaced out evenly around us - seventeen total, counting Jacob. It was clear from their heights and oversized paws that the newcomers all were very, very young. I supposed I should have foreseen this. With so many vampires encamped in the neighborhood, a werewolf population explosion was inevitable.

More children dying. I wondered why Sam had allowed this, and then I realized he had no other choice. If any of the wolves stood with us, the Volturi would be sure to search out the rest. They had gambled their entire species on this stand.

I couldn't help counting the total members of the Volturi. There were thirty-two of them. Even if you did not count the two drifting, waifish black-cloaked figures in the very back, who I took to be the wives, their protected position suggesting that they would not be involved in the attack - and some hope came up my throat. There were thirty-five of us who would fight, and then fifteen more to watch. At least Jiminy Cricket would have the best chance of escaping. Plus the seventeen wolves, it seemed like we had a better chance than we presumed.

"The redcoats are coming, the redcoats are coming," Garrett muttered mysteriously to himself and then chuckled once. He slid one step closer to Kate.

"They did come," Vladimir whispered to Stefan.

"The wives," Stefan hissed back. "The entire guard. All of them together. It's well we didn't try Volterra."

"Looks like we may have a chance," Robert whispered hopefully to Giselle, unaware that we could hear his whisper. I heard their hands clutch tight together.

Marlene stepped closer to Sarox, and gently held his hand.

And then, while the Volturi slowly and majestically advanced, more vampires began entering the clearing behind them, and my hope lowered to one degree. Our numbers were even now.

The faces in this seemingly endless influx of vampires were the antithesis to the Volturi's expressionless discipline - they wore a kaleidoscope of emotions. At first there was the shock and even some anxiety as they saw the unexpected force awaiting them. But that concern passed quickly; they were secure in their overwhelming numbers, secure behind the unstoppable Volturi force. Their features returned to the expression they'd worn before we'd surprised them.

It was easy enough to understand their mindset - the faces were that explicit. This was an angry mob, whipped to a frenzy and slavering for justice. I did not fully realize the vampire world's feeling toward the immortal children before I read these faces.

It was clear that this motley, disorganized horde - more than forty vampires together - was the Volturi's own kind of witness. When we were dead, they would spread the word that the criminals had been eradicated, that the Volturi had acted with nothing but impartiality. Most looked like they hoped for more than just an opportunity to witness - they wanted to help tear and burn, and probably eat.

One vampire in the opposing force did not seem to belong to either party; I recognized Irina as she hesitated in between the two companies, her expression unique among the others. Irina's horrified gaze was locked on Tanya's position in the front line. Mickey gazed at them in caution. Edward snarled, a very low but fervent sound.

"Alistair was right," Edward murmured to Carlisle.

I watched Carlisle glance at Edward questioningly.

"Alistair was right?" Tanya whispered.

"They - Caius and Aro - come to destroy and acquire," Edward breathed almost silently back; only our side could hear. "They have many layers of strategy already in place. If Irina's accusation had somehow proven to be false, they were committed to find another reason to take offense. But they can see Renesmee now, so they are perfectly sanguine about their course. We could still attempt to defend against their other contrived charges, but first they have to stop, to hear the truth about Renesmee." Then, even lower. "Which they have no intention of doing."

Jacob gave a strange little huff.

Abruptly, I was furious. Beyond furious, I was murderously enraged. My hopeless despair vanished entirely. A faint reddish glow highlighted the dark figures in front of me, and all I wanted in that moment was the chance to sink my teeth into them, to rip their limbs from their bodies and pile them for burning. I was so maddened I could have danced around the pyre where they roasted alive; I would have laughed while their ashes smoldered. My lips curved back automatically, and a low, fierce snarl tore up my throat from the pit of my stomach. I realized the corners of my mouth were turned up in a smile.

Some of the humans jumped at my growling. It was probably uncomfortable for them, but I could not help myself.

Beside me, Zafrina and Senna echoed my hushed growl. Edward squeezed the hand he still held, cautioning me.

The shadowed Volturi faces were still expressionless for the most part. Only two sets of eyes betrayed any emotion at all. In the very center, touching hands, Aro and Caius had paused the evaluate, and the entire guard had paused with them, waiting for the order to kill. The two did not look at each other, but it was obvious that they were communicating. Marcus, though touching Aro's other hand, did not seem part of the conversation. His expression was not as mindless as the guards', but it was nearly as blank.

The bodies of the Volturi's witnesses leaned toward us, their eyes fixed furiously on Renesmee and me, but they stayed near the fringe of the forest, leaving a wide berth between themselves and the Volturi soldiers. Only Irina hovered close behind the Volturi, just a few paces away from the ancient females - both fair-haired with powdery skin and filmed eyes - and their two massive bodyguards.

There was a woman in one of the darker gray cloaks just behind Aro. I couldn't be sure, but it looked like she might actually be touching his back. Was this the other shield, Renata? I wondered, as Eleazar had, if she would be able to repel _me_.

But I would not waste my life trying to get to Caius or Aro. I had more vital targets.

I searched the line for them now and had no difficulty picking out the two petite, deep gray cloaks near the heart of the arrangement. Alec and Jane, easily the smallest members of the guard, stood just to Marcus's side, flanked by Demetri on the other. Their lovely faces were smooth, giving nothing away; they were the darkest cloaks beside the pure black of the ancients. The witch twins, Vladimir had called them. Their powers were the cornerstone of the Volturi offensive. The jewels in Aro's collection.

My muscles flexed, and venom welled up in my mouth.

Aro's and Caius's clouded red eyes flickered across our line. I read surprise and disappointment in Aro's face as his gaze roved over our faces again and again, glaring at our human and anthropomorphic witnesses and looking for the one person that was missing. Chagrin tightened his lips.

In that moment, I was nothing but grateful that Alice had run.

As the pause lengthened, I heard Edward's breath speed.

"Edward?" Carlisle asked, low and anxious.

Sarox glared at him but remained in place.

"They're not sure how to proceed. They're surprised by the humans in our crowd and the animal creatures. They're weighing options right now, choosing key targets - me, of course, you, Eleazar, Tanya. Marcus is reading the strength of our ties to each other, looking for weak points. The Romanians' presence irritates them. They're worried about the faces they don't recognize - the humans, of course, and Zafrina and Senna, and the wolves, naturally - and animal creatures. They've never encountered such company nor have they been outnumbered before. That's what stopped them."

"Outnumbered?" Mickey whispered incredulously.

"They don't count their witnesses," Edward breathed. "They are nonentities, meaningless to the guard. Aro just enjoys an audience. - And it's best you don't scowl at him, Master Donald," he warned Donald quietly.

He gave Edward a frustrated glance, then turned his attention back to the silent Volturi.

"Should I speak?" Carlisle asked.

Edward hesitated, then nodded. "This is the only chance you'll get."

Carlisle squared his shoulders and paced several steps ahead of our defensive line. I hated to see him alone, unprotected.

He spread his arms, holding his palms up as if in greeting. "Aro, my old friend. It's been centuries."

The white clearing was dead silent for a long moment. I could feel the tension rolling off Edward as he listened to Aro's assessment of Carlisle's words. The strain mounted as the seconds ticked by.

And then Aro stepped forward out of the center of the Volturi formation. The shield, Renata, moved with him as if the tips of her fingers were sewn to his robe. For the first time, the Volturi ranks reacted. A muttered grumble rolled through the line, eyebrows lowered into scowls, lips curled back from teeth. A few of the guard leaned forward into a crouch.

Aro held one hand up toward them. "Peace."

He walked just a few paces more, then cocked his head to one side. His milky eyes glinted with curiosity.

"Fair words, Carlisle," he breathed in his thin, wispy voice. "They seem out of place, considering the army you've assembled to kill me, and to kill my dear ones." He glared at our human witnesses. "I hadn't expected so many humans to be aware of our existence, either."

Carlisle shook his head and stretched his right hand forward as if there were not still almost a hundred yards between them. "You have but to touch my hand to know that was never my intent."

Aro's shrewed eyes narrowed. "But how can your intent possibly matter, dear Carlisle, in the face of what you have done?" He frowned, and a shadow of sadness crossed his features - whether it was genuine or not, I could not tell.

"I have not committed the crimes you are here to punish me for. Not is this gathering what you think."

"Then step aside and let us punish those responsible. Truly, Carlisle, nothing would please me more than to preserve your life today."

"No one has broken the law, Aro. Let me explain." Carlisle offered his hand.

Before Aro could answer, Caius drifted swiftly forward to Aro's side.

"So many pointless rules, so many unnecessary laws you create for yourself, Carlisle," the white-haired ancient hissed. "How is it possible that you defend the breaking of two that really matter?"

"The laws are not broken. If you would listen - "

"We see the child, Carlisle, and the humans," Caius snarled. "Do not treat us as fools."

_"He's about to become one if he doesn't shut up and listen," _Sarox whispered quietly. Only those in our crowd could hear him.

"She is not an immortal. She is not a vampire. I can easily prove this with just a few moments - "

Caius cut him off. "If she is not one of the forbidden, then why have you massed a battalion to protect her? Not to mention the humans you have assembled."

"Witnesses, Caius, just as you have brought," Carlisle gestured to the angry horde at the ledge of the woods; some of them growled in response. "Any one of the friends can tell you the truth about the child. Or you could just look at her, Caius. See the flush of human blood in her cheeks."

"Atrifice!" Caius snapped. "Where is the informer? Let her come forward!" He craned his neck around until he spotted Irina lingering behind the wives. "You! Come!"

Irina stared at him uncomprehendingly, her face like that of someone who has not entirely awakened from a hideous nightmare. Impatiently, Caius snapped his fingers. One of the wives' huge bodyguards moved to Irina's side and prodded her roughly in the back. Irina blinked twice and then walked slowly toward Caius in a doze. She stopped several yards short, her eyes still on her sisters.

Caius closed the distance between them and slapped her across the face. Some of our human friends jumped and winced at the sound of his slap: it sounded like breaking a hard rock.

It couldn't have hurt, but there was something terribly degrading about the action. It was like watching someone kick a dog. Tanya and Kate hissed in synchronization.

Irina's body went rigid and her eyes finally focused on Caius. He pointed one clawed finger at Renesmee, where she clung to my back, her fingers still tangled in Jacob's fur. Caius turned entirely red in my furious view. A growl rumbled through Jacob's chest.

"This is the child you saw?" Caius demanded. "The one that was obviously more than human?"

Irina peered at us, examining Renesmee for the first time since entering the clearing.

"Well?" Caius snarled.

"I... I'm not sure," she said, her tone perplexed.

Caius's hand twitched as if he wanted to slap her again. "What do you mean?" he said in a steely whisper.

"She's not the same, but I think it's the same child. What I mean is, she's changed. This child is bigger than the one I saw, but - "

Caius's furious gasp crackled through his suddenly bared teeth, and Irina broke off without finishing. Aro flitted to Caius's side and put a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"Be composed, brother. We have time to sort this out. No need to be hasty."

With a sullen expression, Caius turned his back on Irina.

"Now, sweetling," Aro said in a warm, sugary murmur. "Show me what you're trying to say." He held his hand out to the bewildered vampire.

Uncertainly, Irina took his hand. He held hers for only five seconds.

"You see, Caius?" he said. "It's a simple matter to get what we need."

Caius didn't answer him. From the corner of his eye, Aro glanced once at his audience, his mob, and then turned back to Carlisle.

"And we have a mystery on our hands, it seems. It would appear the child has grown. Yet Irina's first memory was clearly that of an immortal child. Curious."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to explain," Carlisle said, and from the change of his voice, I could guess at his relief. This was the pause we had pinned our nebulous hopes on.

I felt no relief. I waited, almost numb with rage, for the layers of strategy Edward had promised.

Carlisle held out his hand again.

Aro hesitated for a moment. "I would rather have the explanation from someone more central to the story, my friend. Am I wrong to assume that this breach was not of your making?"

"There was no breach."

"Be that as it may, I _will _have every facet of the truth." Aro's feathery voice hardened. "And the best way to get that is to have the evidence directly from your talented son." He inclined his head in Edward's direction. "As the child clings to his newborn mate, I'm assuming Edward is involved."

Of course he wanted Edward. Once he could see into Edward's mind, he would know all our thoughts. Except mine.

Edward turned quickly to kiss my forehead and Renesmee's, not meeting my eyes. Then he strode across the snowy field, clapping Carlisle on the shoulder as he passed. I heard a low whimper from behind me - Esme's terror breaking through. Mickey, Donald, and Goofy worried, but he did not turn to them.

The red haze I saw around the Volturi army flamed brighter than before. I could not bear to watch Edward cross the empty white space alone - but I also could not endure to have Renesmee one step closer to our adversaries. The opposing needs tore at me; I was frozen tightly it felt like my bones might shatter from the pressure of it.

I saw Jane smile as Edward crossed the midpoint in the distance between us, when he was closer to them than he was to us.

That smug little smile did it. My fury peaked, higher even than the raging bloodlust I'd felt the moment the wolves had committed to this doomed fight. I could taste the madness on my tongue - I felt it flow through me like a tidal wave of pure power. My muscles tightened, and I acted automatically. I threw my shield with all the force in my mind, flung it across the impossible expanse of the field - twenty times my best distance - like a javelin. My breath rushed out in a huff with the exertion.

The shield blew out from me in a bubble of sheer energy, a mushroom cloud of liquid steel. It pulsed like a living thing - I could _feel _it, from the apex of the edges.

There was no recoil to the elastic fabric now; in that instant of raw force, I saw that the backlash I'd felt before was of my own making - I had been clinging to that invisible part of me in self-defense, subconsciously unwilling to let it go. Now I set it free, and my shield exploded a good hundred yards out from me effortlessly, taking only a fraction of my concentration. I could feel it flex like just another muscle, obedient to my will. I pushed it, shaped it to a long, pointed oval. Everything underneath the flexible iron shield was suddenly a part of me - I could feel the life force of everything it covered like points of bright heat, dazzling sparks of light surrounding me. Some of the living ones, sixteen in particular, had the strongest light in the crowd; their warmth was everywhere they almost mesmerized me. I refocused quickly and thrust the shield forward the length of the clearing, and exhaled in relief when I felt Edward's brilliant light within my protection. I held there, contracting this new muscle so that it closely surrounded Edward, a thin but unbreakable sheet between his body and our enemies.

Barely a second had passed. Edward was still walking to Aro. Everything had changed absolutely, but no one had noticed the explosion except for me. A startled laugh burst through my lips. I felt the others glancing at me and saw Jacob's big black eye roll down to stare at me like I'd lost my mind.

Edward stopped a few steps away from Aro, and I realized within some chagrin that though I certainly could, I _should_not prevent this exchange from happening. This was the point of all our preparations: getting Aro to hear our side of the story. It was almost physically painful to do it, but reluctantly I pulled my shield back and left Edward exposed again. The laughing mood had vanished. I focused totally on Edward, ready to shield him instantly if something went wrong.

Edward's chin came up arrogantly, and he held his hand out to Aro as if he were conferring a great honor. Aro seemed only delighted with his attitude, but his delight was not universal. Renata fluttered nervously in Aro's shadow. Caius's scowl was so deep it looked like his papery, translucent skin would create permanently. Little Jane showed her teeth, and beside her Alec's eyes narrowed in concentration. I guessed he was ready, like me, to act at a second's notice.

Aro closed the distance without pause - and really, what did he have to fear? The hulking shadows of the lighter gray cloaks - the brawny fighters like Felix - were but a few yards away. Jane and her burning gift could throw Edward on the ground, writhing in agony. Alec could blind and deafen him before he could take a step in Aro's direction. No one know that I had the power to stop them, not even Edward.

Every thought, every strategy, every insight - everything Edward had heard in the minds around him during the last month - was now Aro's. And further back - every vision of Alice's, every quiet moment with our family, every picture in Renesmee's head, every kiss, every touch between Edward and me... All of that was Aro's, too.

I hissed with frustration, and the shield roiled with my irritation, shifting its shape and contracting around our side.

"Easy, Bella," Zafrina whispered to me.

I clenched my teeth together.

Aro continued to concentrate on Edward's memories. Edward' head bowed, too, the muscles of his neck locking tight as he read back again everything that Aro took from him, and Aro's response to it all.

This two-way but unequal conversation continued long enough that even the guard grew uneasy. Low murmurs ran through the line until Caius barked a sharp order for silence. Jane was edging forward like she couldn't help herself, and Renata's face was rigid with distress. For a moment, I examined this powerful shield that seemed so panicky and weak; though she was useful to Aro, I could tell she was no warrior. It was not her job to fight but to protect. There was no bloodlust in her. Raw as I was, I knew that if this were between her and me, I would obliterate her.

I refocused as Aro straightened, his eyes flashing open, their expression awed and wary. He did not release Edward's hand.

Edward's muscles loosened ever so slightly.

"You see?" Edward asked, his velvet voice calm.

"Yes, I see, indeed," Aro agreed, and amazingly, he sounded almost amused. "I doubt whether any two among gods or mortals have ever seen quite so clearly. Never quite so bright, either."

The disciplined faces of the guard showed the same disbelief I felt.

"You have given me much to ponder, young friend," Aro continued. "Much more than I expected." Still he did not release Edward's hand, and Edward's tense stance was that of one who listens.

Aro glared bewildered at our friends, particularly Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, and then turned to Sarox and the rest of our crowd. "Such a mesmerizing gathering, indeed."

Edward didn't answer.

"May I meet her?" Aro asked - almost pleaded - with sudden eager interest. "I never dreamed of the existence of such a thing in all my centuries. What an addition to our histories!"

"What is this about, Aro?" Caius snapped before Edward could answer. Just the question had me pulling Renesmee around into my arms, cradling her protectively against my chest.

"Something you've never dreamed of, my practical friend," he turned his glance to Sarox, "and something you haven't seen in centuries, and yet you see more than you expected today. Take a moment to ponder, for the justice we intended to deliver no longer applies."

Caius hissed in surprise at his words.

"Peace, brother," Aro cautioned soothingly.

This should have been the good news - these were the words we'd been hoping for, for the reprieve we'd never really thought possible. Aro had listened to the truth. Aro had admitted that the law had not been broken.

But my eyes riveted on Edward, and I saw the muscles in his back tighten. I replayed in my head Aro's instruction for Caius to _ponder_, and heard the double meaning.

"Will you introduce me to your daughter, Edward?" Aro asked Edward again. "And perhaps some of your new friends, as well."

I heard the specific meaning behind his word _friends_.

Caius was not the only one who hissed at this new revelation.

Edward nodded reluctantly. And yet, Renesmee had won over so many others. Aro always seemed the leader of the ancients. If he were on her side, could the others act against us?

Aro still gripped Edward's hand, and he now answered a question that the rest of us had not heard.

"I think a compromise on this one point is certainly acceptable, under the circumstance. We will meet in the middle."

Aro released his hand. Edward turned back toward us, and Aro joined him, throwing one arm casually over Edward's shoulder like they were the best of friends - all the while maintaining in contact with Edward's skin. They began to cross the field back to our side.

The entire guard fell into step behind them. Aro raised a hand negligently without looking at them.

"Hold, my dear ones. Truly, they mean us no harm if we are peaceable."

The guard reacted to this more openly than before, with snarls and hisses of protest, but held their position. Renata, clinging closer to Aro than ever, whimpered in anxiety.

"Master," she whispered.

"Don't fret, my love," he responded. "All is well."

"Perhaps you should bring a few members of your guard with us," Edward suggested. It will make them more comfortable."

Aro nodded at if this was a wise observation he should have thought of himself. He snapped his fingers thrice. "Felix, Demetri, Heidi."

The three vampires were at his side instantaneously, looking precisely the same as the last time I'd met them. Both were tall and dark-haired, Demetri hard and lean as the blade of a sword, Felix hulking and menacing as an iron-spiked cudgel, and Heidi ever so beautiful as always, her beauty was comparable to Rosalie's.

The six of them stopped in the middle of the snowy field.

"Bella," Edward called. "Bring Renesmee, and Sarox... and a few friends."

I took a deep breath. My body was tight with opposition. The idea of taking Renesmee into the center of the conflict... But I trusted Edward. He would know if Aro was planning any treachery at this point.

Aro had four protectors on his side of the summit, so I would bring two with me. It took me only a second to decide. I heard Sarox's footsteps as he made his way through the crowd to my side. Some other footsteps started to follow, and then Edward focused across the field.

"I believe you should stay in position, my friends," he warned, and the steps stopped.

I refocused as Sarox made to my side.

"Jacob? Emmett?" I asked quietly. Emmett, because he would be dying to go. Jacob, because he wouldn't be able to bear being left behind.

Both nodded. Emmett grinned. Sarox looked forward with no fear in his eyes.

I crossed the field with them flanking me. I heard another rumble from the guard as they saw my choices - clearly they did not trust the werewolf. Aro lifted his hand, waving away their protest again.

"Interesting company you keep," Demetri murmured to Edward. And then he sniffed. "Tasty, too."

Edward didn't respond, but a low growl slipped through Jacob's teeth.

Sarox glared at Demetri angrily rather than looking frightened like some of the few times when our guests arrived. He knew what it meant to face the Volturi from the beginning.

We stepped a few yards from Aro. Edward ducked under Aro's arm and quickly joined us, taking my hand.

For a moment, we faced each other in silence. Then Felix greeted me in a low aside.

"Hello again, Bella." He grinned cockily while still tracking Jacob's every twitch with his peripheral vision.

I smiled wryly at the mountainous vampire. "Hey, Felix."

Felix chuckled. "You look good. Immortality suits you."

"Thanks so much."

"You're welcome. It's too bad..."

He let his comment trail off into silence. but I didn't need Edward's gift to imagine the end. _It's too bad we're going to kill you in a sec._

"Yes, too bad, isn't it?" I murmured.

Felix winked.

Aro paid no attention to our exchange. He glared curiously at Sarox. "A boy who masters the power of the Keyblade, and connects with those with the same power." He glared over the rest of our crowd. "And so much more. Fascinating! Truly, this is a remarkable moment. It's been centuries since I last saw one with the same gift; they are so rare. And so extraordinarily gifted beyond those of our kind. I wonder how my dear ones would think." He held out his hand in invitation.

His guard hissed aggressively at his comment, but stayed in position.

"You haven't come to meet me, or my kind," Sarox reminded him, his eyebrows creased together. "You have come to meet Renesmee, the one you thought was an immortal child you've come to destroy."

He retracted his hand.

"Of course, this can wait."

He turned to Renesmee. He leaned his head to one side, fascinated. "I hear her strange heart," he murmured with an almost musical lilt to his words. "I smell her strange scent." Then his hazy eyes shifted to me. "In truth, young Bella, immortality does become your most extraordinarily," he said. "It is as if you were designed for this life.

I nodded once in acknowledgement of his flattery.

"You liked my gift?" he asked, eyeing the pendant I wore.

"It's beautiful, and very, very generous of you. Thank you. I should probably have sent you a note."

Aro laughed delightedly. "It's just a little something I had lying around. I thought it might complement your new face, and so it does."

I heard a little hiss from the center of the Volturi line. I glanced over Aro's shoulder.

It seemed Jane wasn't happy about the fact that Aro had given me a present.

Aro cleared his throat to reclaim my attention. "May I greet your daughter, lovely Bella?" he asked sweetly.

This is what we'd hoped for. I reminded myself. Fighting the urge to take Renesmee and run for it, I walked two slow steps forward. My shield rippled out behind me like a cape, protecting the rest of my family while Renesmee was left exposed. It felt wrong, horrible.

Aro met us, his face beaming.

"But she's exquisite," he murmured. "So like you and Edward." And then louder, "Hello Renesmee."

Renesmee looked at me quickly. I nodded.

"Hello, Aro," she answered formally in her high, ringing voice.

Aro's eyes were bemused.

"What is it?" Caius hissed from behind. He seemed infuriated by the need to ask.

"Half mortal, half immortal," Aro announced to him and the rest of the guard without turning his enthralled gaze from Renesmee. "Conceived so, and carried by this newborn while she was still human."

"Impossible," Caius scoffed.

"Do you think they've fooled me, then, brother?" Aro's expression was greatly amused, but Caius flinched. "Is the heartbeat you hear a trickery as well?"

Caius scowled, looking as chagrined as if Aro's gentle questions had been blows.

"Calmly and carefully, brother," Aro cautioned, still smiling at Renesmee. "I know well how you love your justice, but there is no justice in acting against this unique little one for her parentage. And so much to learn, so much to learn! I know you don't have my enthusiasm for collecting histories, but be tolerant with me, brother, as I add a chapter that stuns me with its improbability. We came expecting only justice and the sadness of false friends, but look at what we have gained instead! A new, bright knowledge of ourselves, our possibilities.

He held out his hand to Renesmee in invitation. But this was not what she wanted. She leaned away from me, stretching upward, to touch her fingertips to Aro's face.

Aro did not react with shock as almost everyone else had reacted to this performance from Renesmee; he was as used to the flow of thought and memory from other minds as Edward was.

His smile widened, and he sighed in satisfaction. "Brilliant," he whispered.

Renesmee leaned back into my arms, her little face very serious.

"Please?" she asked him.

His smile turned gentle. "Of course, I have no desire to harm your loved ones, precious Renesmee."

Aro's voice was so comforting and affectionate, it took me in for a second. And then I heard Edward's teeth grind together and, far behind us, Maggie's outraged hiss at the lie.

"I wonder," Aro said thoughtfully, seeming unaware of the reaction to his previous words.

His eyes moved unexpectedly to Jacob, and instead of the disgust the other Volturi viewed the giant wolf with, Aro's eyes were filled with a longing that I did not comprehend. And then he turned to Sarox.

"It doesn't work that way," Edward said, the careful neutrality gone from his suddenly harsh tone.

"Just an errant thought," Aro said, appraising Jacob and Sarox openly, and then his eyes moved to King Mickey and his guardians, and then moved slowly across the lines of werewolves and humans behind us. Whatever Renesmee had shown him, it made the wolves and humans suddenly interesting to him.

"They don't _belong _to us, Aro. They don't follow our commands that way. They're here because they want to be."

Jacob growled menacingly.

"They seem quite attached to you, though," Aro said. "And your young mate and your... family. _Loyal_." His voice caressed the word softly. Then he looked at Sarox. "And even the Keyblade master seems very infatuated with you."

Sarox eyed him suspiciously.

"They're committed to protecting human life, Aro. That makes them able to coexist with us, but hardly with you. Unless you're rethinking your lifestyle."

Aro laughed merrily. "Just an errant thought," he repeated. "You well know how that is. We none of us can entirely control our subconscious desires."

Edward grimaced. "I do know how that is. And I also know the difference between that kind of thought and the kind with a purpose behind it. It could never work, Aro."

Jacob's vast head turned in Edward's direction, and a faint whine slipped from between his teeth.

"He's interested with the Keyblade wielders and the princesses, and intrigued with the idea of... guard dogs," Edward murmured back.

There was one second of dead silence, and then the sound of the furious snarls from the entire pack filled the giant clearing. Some of the humans jumped and screamed in response. I heard Goofy and Donald's screams most clearly.

There was a sharp bark of command - from Sam, I guessed, though I didn't turn to look - and the complaint broke off into ominous quiet.

"I suppose that answers that question," Aro said, laughing again. "_This _lot as picked its side. What about you, Sarox?" he asked suddenly, his eyes focused on the boy.

He shook his head.

"No thanks, I already got a job."

"Indeed, you do, don't you?" he sighed. "This is a sadness. Think what an addition it would be to our family."

Edward hissed and leaned forward. I clutched at his arm, wondering what could be in Aro's thoughts that would make him react so violently, while Felix, Demetri and Heidi slipped into crouches in synchronization. Aro waved them off again. They all returned to their former posture, Edward included.

"So much to discuss," Aro said, his tone suddenly that of an inundated businessman. "So much to decide. If you and your protectors will excuse me, my dear Cullens, I must confer with my brothers."


	17. Chapter 16: Sarox: Contravinces

SAROX

"Sarox, why don't you go back," Edward warned. His tone serious.

The leader, Aro, did not rejoin his anxious guard waiting on the north side of the clearing; instead, he waved them forward. Some of them glared at me as they approached.

Edward started backing up immediately, pulling Bella and Emmett's arms and warned me again. "Sarox, go back." We hurried backward, keeping our eyes on them. Jacob retreated slowest than all of us, he had his fangs bared warily at Aro. If Nessie was in face with a slightest bit of danger, he would be the first to protect her. As we continued our retreat, Nessie grabbed the end of his fury tail, and dragged him back with us. We reached our side at the same time that the Volturi surrounded Aro again.

Marlene, Max, PJ, and my parents came quickly to my side as soon as we were in the crowd again.

"Are you alright?" Marlene asked anxiously, as though I'd been out to war. Almost.

"I'm fine," I answered soothingly.

Mom and Dad just smiled cheerfully at me, but worry was undeniable in their eyes; I felt guilty for worrying them. Max patted my back cheerfully while PJ touched my shoulder.

I turned to Edward again, and saw the unexpressed anger in his eyes as he listened to the Volturi's wave of thoughts.

_What're they thinking about, Edward?_ I asked with mine.

"How to handle the situation," he whispered, his teeth gritted together like he was about to growl. "Caius wants slaughter. Aro is sticking with his plan to acquire, but hasn't found a way yet."

Jacob hissed in hostility.

A sliver white-haired male vampire, whom I knew now was Caius, began to argue with Aro, seemingly oblivious to our conversation.

"How can you abide this infamy? Why do we stand here impotently in the face of such an outrageous crime, covered by such a ridiculous deception?" He held his arms at his sides, his hands curled into claws. Carlisle had told me that Aro acted as the first and official leader in the group while the other two just went along, but something told me Caius would be willing to dethrone his brother and take his place. I wondered why...

Then I remembered they had a powerful guard named Chelsea. Maybe she was the one who made sure Aro's position was safely in place, making Marcus and Caius unwilling to take down their brother. It seemed entertaining in my head. But if Caius were to be the leader, we would not be standing here right now. Edward fought back a smug as if he found my thought hilariously entertaining.

"Because it's all true," Aro told Caius calmly. "Every word of it. See how many witnesses stand ready to give evidence that they have seen this miraculous child grow and mature in just the short time they've known her. That they have felt the warmth of the blood that pulses in her veins." Aro's gesture swept from Amun on one side across to Siobhan on the other, and then from me to the crowd behind us. "And these people from other worlds are here for the same purpose. They pose no threat whatsoever."

Caius reacted oddly to Aro's soothing words, starting ever so slightly at the mention of _witnesses_. The anger drained from his features, replaced by cold calculation. He glanced at the Volturi witnesses with an expression that looked a little... nervous.

The entire line of Volturi witnesses no longer wore angry expressions on their faces, rather, they looked confused. Whispered conversations seethed through the crowd as they tried to make sense of what had happened.

"Preposterous."

"Nonetheless, these people's involvement will not affect our way of life. And what they stand for comes from nothing but truth. Caius, as your brother, it is a promise I will be surely able to make. If we leave them in peace, they will return to their worlds and we will still be safe after this."

Marlene held my hand in her fingers as I flexed. It was not because of her touch, though. I was quite familiar with her touch, but the conversation between Aro and Caius bothered me to the point of my spine. I hoped Bella had already pushed out her shield, and hopefully protecting as many as she could manage.

Caius was frowning, deep in thought.

My eyes flickered to PJ and Max, they met my gaze and nodded lightly. Then I turned my head around to face my parents, Dad had an angry, yet determined expression; Mom smiled as sweet as ever. I turned to King Mickey, Uncle Riku, and his two guards, Donald and Goofy. Their eyes focused on the Volturi line, but they had the same determined expressions on their faces. Carlisle, Rosalie and Esme shared quick, worried glances every now and then. Carlisle moved to Tanya's side. On my other side, Bella seemed to be concentrating as she held Renesmee tightly, maybe already shielding as many as she could. Edward, Emmett and Jacob kept their eyes on the ones we just spoke to, guarding in case they attack without telling. We were thinking the same, despite our evidence and testimony, the Volturi wasn't going to leave us alone easily. I turned to the closest person on my side, Marlene; she smiled lightly at me as though she knew what would be coming, but didn't want to lose her spirit. I smiled in response, just a tiny smile.

I opened my free hand, ready to summon my Keyblade in case the situation needed. If any of the hostile vampires decided to strike, I would knock him off.

"The werewolves," Caius murmured after a few seconds.

This raised new worry in me. We had studied their world's vampire laws, nature, and magic to prepare ourselves for this trial. I couldn't remember much from Carlisle's lessons, but I remembered that vampires and werewolves were comparable by strength, but not _compatible_. Werewolves and vampires were natural enemies destined to kill each other if they came face-to-face. It made me wonder how the Cullens were able to live near so many of them.

"Ah, brother," Aro answered Caius's statement with a pained look.

"Will you defend that alliance, too, Aro?" Caius demanded. "The Children of the Moon have been our bitter enemies from the dawn of time. We have hunted them to near extinction. Yet Carlisle encourages a familiar relationship with this enormous infestation - no doubt in an attempt to overthrow us. The better to protect his warped lifestyle."

Edward cleared his throat loudly and Caius glared at him. Aro placed his thin, delicate hand over his own face, as if he was embarrassed for the other vampires.

"Caius, it's the middle of the day," Edward pointed out. He gestured to Jacob. "These are not Children of the Moon, clearly. They bear no relation to your enemies on the other side of the world."

"You breed mutants here," Caius spit back at him.

Edward's jaw clenched and unclenched, then he answered evenly. "They aren't even werewolves. Aro can tell you all about it if you don't believe me."

_Okay, that's new,_ I thought.

Marlene, Max, PJ and I shot mystified looks at Jacob, the same time Bella did. They didn't seem to know what Edward was talking about, either.

"Dear Caius, I would have warned you not to press this point if you had told me your thoughts," Aro murmured. "Though the creatures think of themselves as werewolves, they are not. The more accurate name for them would be 'shapeshifters'. The choice of a wolf form was purely chance. It could have been a bear of a hawk or a panther when the first change was made. These creatures truly have nothing to do with the Children of the Moon. They have merely inherited this skill from their fathers. It's genetic - they do not continue their species by infecting others the way true werewolves do."

I barely noticed that Caius glared at him with irritation. I was too busy with new, curious thoughts that came to my mind. So, none of them knew the real kinds of werewolves? It sounded like a big joke with embarrassing consequences.

"They know our secret," Caius said flatly, breaking my concentration, "and the same goes for the humans here."

Aro answered his accusation. "The laws that we have in our world had always been upheld to keep the existence of our kind secret to prevent humans in our world from knowing about us. But my dear brother, these people have come from other worlds. When they leave, they will pose no threat to breaking our laws. And they all know that it is forbidden to tell others of the existence of other worlds, others but those who already know, and aware of the consequences. That is why they have come alone. As for the wolves, they are creatures of our supernatural world. Perhaps even more dependant upon secrecy than we are; they can hardly expose us. Carefully, Caius. Specious allegations get us nowhere."

Caius took a deep breath and nodded. They exchanged a long, significant glance.

I couldn't make much of what they meant behind their words, but whatever it was, it was not by good intentions. Caius cared for nothing more than slaughter, and today, he wasn't going to leave this place without "punishment"; or have his fun.

"I want to talk to the informant," he announced abruptly, and turned to Irina.

Irina paid no attention to Caius and Aro's conversation; her eyes were completely focused on her sisters: Tanya and Kate, who had lined up to die for a mistake that she made.

"Irina!" Caius barked angrily, unhappy to have to address her.

She looked up, started and afraid.

Caius snapped his fingers.

Hesitantly, she moved from the fringes of the Volturi formation to stand in front of Caius again.

"So you appear to have been quite mistaken in your allegations," he began.

Tanya and Kate leaned forward, anxious for their sister.

"I'm sorry," Irina whispered, "I should have made sure of what I was seeing. But I didn't know..." she gestured helplessly in our direction.

"Dear Caius, could you expect her to have guessed in an instant something so strange and impossible?" Aro asked defensively. "Anyone would have made the same assumption."

Caius flicked his fingers at Aro to silence him.

"We all know you made a mistake," he said brusquely. "I meant to speak of your motivations."

Irina waited nervously for him to continue, and then repeated. "My motivations?"

"Yes, for coming to spy on them in the first place."

Irina flinched at his words.

"You were unhappy with the Cullens, were you not?"

She turned her miserable eyes to Carlisle's face and admitted. "I was."

"Because...?" Caius prompted.

"Because the werewolves killed my friend," she whispered. "And the Cullens wouldn't stand aside to let me avenge him."

"The shapeshifters," Aro corrected her.

"So the Cullens sided with the _shapeshifters _against our own kind - against the friend of a friend, even," Caius summarized.

Max glared angrily at him. We all knew why. Caius was looking for every possible way to accuse the Cullens. And he won't give in till he got his way. I wanted to smack him so badly.

Irina's shoulders stiffened. "That's how I saw it."

Caius waited again and then prompted, "If you'd like to make a formal complaint against the shapeshifters - and the Cullens for supporting their actions - now would be the time." He smiled a tiny cruel smile, waiting for Irina to give him his next excuse.

Irina's jaw jerked up, her shoulders squared.

"No, I have no complaint against the wolves, or the Cullens. You came here today to destroy an immortal child. No immortal child exists. I have made a mistake, and I take full responsibilities for it. But the Cullens are innocent, and you have no reason to still be here. I'm so sorry," she said to us, and then she turned her face toward the Volturi witnesses. "There was no crime. There's no valid reason for you to continue here."

Caius raised his hand as she spoke, and in it was a strange metal object, carved and ornate.

Suddenly Irina was shrouded by three black blurs. It happened so fast that even a vampire wouldn't have reacted fast enough. In that instant, Caius aimed forward with his hand, and in it was a strange, carved metal object; a horrible metallic screeching ripped through the center of the gray melee, and the shocking squealing sound exploded into a startling upward shower of sparks and tongues of flame. The Volturi guards that disabled Irina leaped back quickly from the sudden inferno, retaking their places in the guard's line.

Caius continued to throw a thick flame at the blazing remains of Irina with his metallic flame thrower. After another fraction of a second, the flames disappeared. A gasp rippled through the mass of witnesses behind the Volturi.

We were all too aghast to make any noise at all. It was one thing to know that death was coming, with fierce, unstoppable speed; it was another to watch it happen. If it came for us, we would react, hopefully fast enough, to defend ourselves. But those flames consumed Kate and Tanya's sister.

Caius smiled coldly. "_Now_ she has taken full responsibility for her actions."


	18. Chapter 17: Bella: Potential

BELLA CULLEN

Caius's eyes flashed to our front line, touching swiftly on Tanya's and Kate's frozen forms.

In that second I understood that Caius had never underestimated the ties of a true family. _This_ was the ploy. He had not wanted Irina's complaint; he wanted her defiance. His excuse to destroy her, to ignite the violence that filled the air like a thick, combustible mist. He had thrown a match.

The strained peace of this summit already teetered precariously than an elephant on a tightrope. Once the fight began, there would be no way to stop it. It would only escalate until one side was entirely extinct. Our side. Caius knew this.

So did Edward.

"Stop them!" Edward cried out, jumping to grab Tanya's arm as she lurched forward toward the smiling Caius with a maddened cry of flaring rage. She couldn't shake Edward off before Carlisle had his arms locked around her waist.

"It's too late to help her," he reasoned urgently as she unsuccessfully struggled to break free. "Don't give him what he wants!"

Kate was harder to contain. Shrieking wordlessly like Tanya, she broke into the first stride of the attack that would end with everyone's death. Rosalie was closest to her, but before Rose could clinch her in a headlock, Kate shocked her so violently that Rose crumpled to the ground. Emmett caught Kate's arm and threw her down, then staggered back, his knees giving out. Goofy leaped forward and forcefully pushed her down again, then fell to the side and shook uncontrollably as he moaned. Donald and Max rushed to his side, worried.

Garrett flung himself at her, knocking her to the ground again. He bound his arms around hers, locking his hands around his own wrists, resisting her shocks.

"Zafrina!" Edward shouted urgently.

Instantly, Tanya and Kate's eyes went blank.

Kate's screamed turned to moans. Tanya stopped struggling.

"Give me back my sight," Tanya hissed.

Desperately, but with all the delicacy I could manage, I pulled my shield even tighter against the sparks of my friends, peeling it back carefully from Kate while trying to keep it around Garrett, making it a thin skin between them.

And then Garrett was in command of himself again, holding Kate to the ground.

"If I let you go, will you knock me down again, Kate?" he whispered.

She snarled in response, still thrashing blindly.

King Mickey rushed to Tanya and Carlisle, his eyes constantly shifting between Tanya and Kate.

"Listen, Tanya, Kate, you can't do this," he whispered. "Irina wouldn't want you to die because of her."

"Vengeance doesn't help her now," Carlisle said in a low but intense whisper. "Irina wouldn't want you to waste your lives this way. Think about what you're doing. If you attack the Volturi, we will all die."

"Is that what you would want Irina to do if you were the ones who died?"

Tanya's shoulders hunched with grief, and she leaned into Carlisle for support. Kate was finally still. Carlisle, Garrett, and His Majesty continued to console the sisters with urgent words.

And my attention returned to the weight of the stares that pressed down on our moment of chaos. From the corners of my eyes, I could see that Edward and everyone else besides Carlisle, King Mickey, Garrett were on their guard again as well.

The heaviest glare came from Caius, staring with enraged disbelief at Kate and Garrett in the snow. Aro was watching the same two, incredulity the strongest emotion on his face. He knew what Kate could do. He had felt her potency through Edward's memories.

Did he understand what was happening now - did he see that my shield had grown in strength and subtlety far beyond what Edward knew me to be capable of? Or did he think Garrett had learned his own form of immunity.

The Volturi guard no longer stood at disciplined attention - they were crouched forward, waiting to spring the counterstrike the moment we attacked.

Behind them, forty-three witnesses watched with very different expression than the ones they'd worn entering the clearing. Confusion had turned to suspicion. They lightning-fast destruction of Irina had shaken them all. What had been her crime?

Without the immediate attack that Caius had counted on to distract his rash act, the Volturi witnesses were left questioning exactly what was going on here. Aro glanced back swiftly while I watched, his face betraying him with one flash of vexation. His need for an audience had backfired badly.

I heard Stefan and Vladimir murmur to each other in quiet glee at Aro's discomfort.

Aro was obviously concerned with keeping his white hat, as the Romanians had put it. But I didn't believe that the Volturi would leave us in peace just to save their reputation. After they finished with us, surely they would slaughter their witnesses for that purpose. I felt a strange, sudden pity for the mass of the strangers the Volturi had brought to watch us die. Demetri would hunt them until they were extinct, too.

For Jacob and Renesmee, for Alice and Jasper, for Alistair, for the people who had come to help us, and for these strangers who had not known what today would cost them, Demetri had to die.

Aro touched Caius's shoulder lightly. "Irina had been punished for bearing false witness against this child." So that was to be their excuse. He went on. "Perhaps we should return to the matter at hand?"

Caius straightened, and his expression hardened into unreadability. He stared forward, seeing nothing. His face reminded me, oddly, of a person who'd just learned he'd been demoted.

Aro drifted forward, Renata, Felix, Heidi, and Demetri automatically moving with him.

"Just to be through," Aro said, "I'd like to speak a few of your witnesses. Procedure, you know." He waved a hand dismissively.

Two things happened at once. Caius's eyes focused on Aro, and the tiny cruel smile came back. And Edward hissed, his hands balling up in fists so tight it looked like the bones in his knuckles would split through his diamond-hard skin.

I was desperate to ask him what was going on, but Aro was close enough to hear even the quietest breath. I saw Carlisle glance anxiously at Edward's face, and then his own face hardened. Sarox flickered from Edward to his parents with the same anxiety on his face. They could all tell that it wasn't going good.

While Caius had blundered through useless accusations and injudicious attempts to trigger the fight, Aro must have been coming up with a more effective strategy.

Aro ghosted across the snow to the far western end of our line, stopping about ten yards from Amun and Kebi. The nearby wolves bristled angrily but held their positions.

"Ah, Amun, my southern neighbor!" Aro said warmly. "It has been so long since you've visited me."

Amun was motionless with anxiety. Kebi stood still like a statue at his side. "Time means little; I never notice its passing," Amun said through unmoving lips.

"Indeed," Aro agreed. "But perhaps you had another reason to stay away." He looked to Benjamin for a moment, and then back to Amun. He continued. "It can be terribly time-consuming to organize newcomers into a coven. I know that well! I'm grateful I have others to deal with the tedium. I'm glad your additions have fit in so well. I would have loved to have been introduced. I'm sure you were meaning to come to see me soon."

"Of course," Amun said, his tone so emotionless that it was impossible to tell if there was any fear or sarcasm in his assent.

"Oh well, we're all together now! Isn't it lovely"

Amun nodded, his face blank as his voice.

"But the reason for your presence here is not as pleasant, unfortunately. Carlisle called on you to witness?"

"Yes."

"And what did you witness for him?"

Amun spoke with the same cold lack of emotion. "I've observed the child in question. It was evident almost immediately that she was not an immortal child-"

"Perhaps we should define our terminology," Aro interrupted, "now that there seem to be new classifications. By immortal child, you mean of course a human child who had been bitten and thus transformed into a vampire."

"Yes, that is what I meant."

"What else did you observe about the child?"

"The same things that you surely saw in Edward's mind. That the child is biologically related to him and his mate. That she grows. That she learns."

"Yes, yes," Aro interrupted, a hint of impatience was impossible to miss in his voice. "But specifically in your few weeks, what did you see?"

Amun's brow furrowed. "That she grows... quickly."

Aro smiled. "And do you believe that she should be allowed to live?"

A hiss escaped my lips, and I was not alone. Half the vampires in our line echoed my protest. The sound was a low sizzle of fury hanging in the air. Across the meadow, a few of the Volturi witnesses made the same noise. Edward stepped back and wrapped a restraining hand around my wrist.

Aro did not turn to the noise, but Amun glanced around uneasily.

"I did not come to make judgments," he equivocated.

Aro laughed lightly. "Just your opinion is enough."

Amun lifted his chin. "I see no danger in the child. She learns even more swiftly than she grows."

Aro nodded. After a moment, he turned away.

"Aro?" Amun called.

Aro whirled back. "Yes, friend?"

"I gave my witness. I have no more business here. My mate and I would like to take our leave now."

Sarox glared at him in anger.

Aro smiled warmly. "Of course. I'm so glad we were able to chat for a bit. And I'm sure we'll see each other again soon."

Amun's lips were a tight line as he inclined his head once, acknowledging the barely concealed threat. He touched Kebi's arm, and then the two of them ran quickly to the southern edge of the meadow and disappeared into the trees. I knew they wouldn't stop running for a very long time.

Aro glided along the length our line to the east, his guards hovering tensely. He stopped in front of King Mickey, his acquaintances Riku, Donald and Goofy, and his son Max.

Aro bowed politely. "Ah, King Mickey, ruler from the world of Disney. It's an honor," he greeted.

Mickey's eyebrows tightened. "I have come for the same purpose as you know."

"I acknowledged that." He smiled widely.

"As the King of my world, I assure you that this child is half human, which means she poses no threat in exposing your kind to the open. And the law has not been broken."

"Of course, I believe that."

Edward growled again.

"I have heard from Edward's thoughts that you have the power to utilize the Keyblade. Uh... it's been centuries since I last saw one with such a remarkable weapon." He gave Riku an awkward glance, and then looked through our line to see the Keyblade wielders in the farthest back, then eventually to Marlene, Sarox and his parents. "And so many gathered. This is certainly a very special moment."

Donald glared at him suspiciously. Aro refocused on them. "It would just be such a waste if -"

"No one is born to own a Keyblade, Aro," King Mickey interrupted politely. "They choose their own masters. But as Sarox had said before, you have not come to see a Keyblade Master. You're here to see the child."

Aro's smile lowered.

"Of course," he agreed, nodding at the same time.

Aro glided further to the east again with his guards, and stopped in front of Siobhan's massive form.

"Hello, dear Siobhan. You are as lovely as ever."

Siobhan inclined her head, waiting.

"And you?" he asked. "Would you answer my questions the same way Amun has?"

"I would," Siobhan said. "But I would perhaps add a little more. Renesmee understands the limitations. She's no danger to humans - she blends in better than we do. She poses no threat of exposure."

"Can you think of none?" he asked again soberly.

Edward growled, a low ripping sound deep in his throat.

Caius's cloudy crimson eyes brightened.

And Garrett freed Kate to take a step forward, ignoring Kate's hand as she tried to caution him this time.

Siobhan answered slowly, "I don't think I follow you."

Aro drifted lightly back, casually, but toward the rest of his guard. Renata, Heidi, Felix, and Demetri were closer than his shadow.

"There is no broken law," Aro said in a placating voice, but every one of us could that a qualification was coming. I fought back the rage that tired to claw its way up my throat and snarl out my defiance. I hurled the fury into my shield, thickening it, making sure everyone was protected.

"No broken law," Aro repeated. "However, does it follow then that there is no danger? No." He shook his head gently. "That is a separate issue."

The only response was the tightening of already stretched nerves, and Maggie, at the fringes of our band of fighters, shaking her head with slow anger.

Aro paced thoughtfully, looking as if he floated rather than touched the ground with his feet. I noticed every pass took him closer to the protection of his guard.

"She is unique... utterly, impossibly unique. Such a waste it could be, to destroy something so lovely. Especially when we could learn so much..." He sighed, as if unwilling to go on. "But there _is_ danger, danger that cannot be cannot simply be ignored."

No one answered his assertion. It was dead silent as he continued in a monologue that sounded as if he spoke it for himself only.

"How ironic it is that as the humans advance, as their faith in science grows and controls their world, the more free we are from discovery. Yet, as we become ever more uninhibited by their disbelief in the supernatural, they become strong enough in their technologies that, if they wished, they could actually pose a threat to us, even destroy some of us.

"For thousands and thousands of years, our secrecy has been more a matter of convenience, of ease, than of actual safety. This last raw, angry century has given birth to weapons of such power that they endanger even immortals. Now our status as mere myth in truth protects us from these weak creatures we hunt.

"This amazing child" - he lifted his hand palm down as if to rest it on Renesmee, though he was forty yards from her now, almost within the Volturi formation again - "if we could but know her potential - know with _absolute certainty_ that she could always remain shrouded with the obscurity that protects us. But we know nothing of what she will become! Her own parents are plagued by fears of her future. We _cannot_ know what she will grow to be." He paused, looking first at our witnesses, and then meaningfully, at his own. His voice gave a good imitation of sounding torn by his words.

Still looking at his own witnesses, he spoke again. "Only the known is safe. Only the known is tolerable. The unknown is... a vulnerability."

Caius's smile widened viciously.

"You're reaching, Aro," Carlisle said in a bleak voice.

Sarox and his father Sora groaned angrily at Aro in unison.

"Peace, friend." Aro smiled, his face as kind, his voice as gentle, as ever. "Let us not be hasty. Let us look at this from every side."

"May I offer a side to be considered?" Garrett petitioned in a level tone, taking another step forward.

"Nomad," Aro said, nodding in permission.

Garrett's chin lifted. His eyes focused on the huddled mass at the end of the meadow, and he spoke directly tot he Volturi witnesses.

"I came here at Carlisle's request, as the others, to witness," he said. "That is certainly no longer necessary, with regard to the child. We all see what she is.

"I stayed to witness something else. You." He jabbed his finger toward the wary vampires. "Two of you I know - Makenna, Charles - and I can see that many of you are also wanderers, roamers like myself. Answering to none. Think carefully on what I tell you now.

"These ancient ones did _not_come here for justice as they told you. We suspected as much, and now it has been proved. They came, misled, but with a valid excuse for their action. Witness now as they seek flimsy excuses to continue their true mission. Witness them struggle to find a justification for their true purpose - to destroy this family here." He gestured toward Carlisle and Tanya.

"The Volturi come to erase what they perceive as the competition. Perhaps, like me, you look at this clan's golden eyes and marvel. They are difficult to understand, it's true. But the ancient ones look and see something besides their strange chice. They see _power_.

"I have witnesses the bonds within this family - I say _family_, and not _coven_. These strange golden-eyes ones deny their very natures. But in return have they found something worth even more, perhaps, than mere gratification of desire? I've made a little study of them in my time here, and it seems to me that intrinsic to this intense family binding - that which makes them possible at all - is the peaceful character of this life of sacrifice. There is no aggression here like we all saw in the large southern clans that grew and diminished so quickly in their wild feuds. There is no thought for domination. And Aro knows this better than I do."

I watched Aro's face as Garrett's words condemned him, waiting tensely for some response. But Aro's face was only politely amused, as if waiting for a tantrum-throwing child to realize that no one was paying attention to his histrionics.

"Carlisle assured us all, when he told us what was coming, that he did not call us here to fight. These witnesses" - Garrett pointed to Siobhan and Liam - "agreed to give evidence, to slow the Volturi advance with their presence so that Carlisle would get the chance to present his case.

"But some of us wondered" - his eyes flashed to Eleazar's face - "if Carlisle having truth on his side would be enough to stop the so-called justice. Are the Volturi here to protect the safety of our secrecy, or to protect their own power? Did they come to destroy an illegal creation, or a way of life? Could they be satisfied when the danger turned out to be no more than a misunderstanding? Or would they push the issue without the excuse of justice?

"We have the answer to all these questions. We heard it in Aro's lying words - we have one with a gift of knowing such things for certain - and we see it now in Caius's eager smile. Their guard is just a mindless weapon, a tool int ehir masters' quest for domination.

"So now there are more questions, questions that _you _must answer. Who rules you, nomads? Do you answer to someone's will besides your own? Are you free to choose your path, or will the Volturi decide how you will live?

"I came to witness. I stay to fight. The Volturi care nothing for the death of the child. They seek the death of our free will."

He turned, then, to face the ancients. "So come, I say! Let's hear no more lying rationalizations. Be honest in your intents as we will be honest in ours. We will defend our freedom. You will or will not attack it. Choose now, and let these witnesses see the true issue debated here."

Once more he looked to the Volturi witnesses, his eyes probing each face. The power of his words was evident in their expressions. "You might consider joining us. If you think the Volturi will let you live to tell _this _tale, you are mistaken. We may all be destroyed" - he shrugged - "but then again, maybe not. Perhaps we are on more equal footing than they know. Perhaps the Volturi have finally met their match. I promise you this, though - if we fall, so will you."

He ended his heated speech by stepping back to Kate's side and then sliding forward in a half-crouch, prepared for the onslaught.

Aro smiled. "A very pretty speech, my revolutionary friend."

Garrett remained posed for attack. "Revolutionary?" he growled. "Who am I revolting against, might I ask? Are you my king? Do you wish me to call you _master_, too, like your sycophantic guard?"

"Peace, Garrett," Aro said tolerantly. "I meant only to refer to your time of birth. Still a patriot, I see."

Garrett glared back furiously.

"Let us ask our witnesses," Aro suggested. "Let us hear their thoughts before we make our decision. Tell us, friends" - and he turned his back casually on us, moving a few yards toward his mass of nervous observers hovering even closer now to the edge of the forest - "what do you think of all this? I can assure you the child is not what we feared. Do we take the risk and let the child live? Do we put our world in jeopardy to preserve their family intact? Or does earnest Garrett have the right of it? Will you join them in a fight against our sudden quest for dominion?"

The witnesses met his gaze with careful faces. One, a small black-haired woman, looked briefly at the dark blond male at her side.

"Are those our only choices? she asked suddenly, gaze flashing back to Aro. "Agree with you, or fight against you?"

"Of course not, most charming Makenna," Aro said, appearing horrified that anyone could come to that conclusion. "You may go in peace, of course, as Amun did, even if you disagree with the council's decision."

Makenna looked at her mate's face again, and he nodded minutely.

"We did not come here for a fight." She paused, exhaled, then said, "We came here to witness. And our witness is that this condemned family is innocent. Everything that Garrett claimed is the truth."

"Ah," Aro said sadly. "I'm sorry you see us in that way. But such is the nature of our work."

"It is not what I see, but what I feel," Makenna's maize-haired mate spoke in a high, nervous voice. He glanced at Garrett. "Garrett said they have ways of knowing lies. I, too, know when I am hearing the truth, and when I am not." With frightened eyes he moved closer to his mate, waiting for Aro's reaction.

"Do not fear us, friend Charles. No doubt the patriot truly believes what he says," Aro chuckled lightly, and Charles's eyes narrowed.

"That is our witness," Makenna said. "We're leaving now."

She and Charles backed away slowly, not turning before they were lost from view in the trees. One other stranger began to retreat the same way, then three more darted after him.

I evaluated the thirty-seven vampires that stayed. A few of them appeared just too confused to make the decision. But the majority of them seemed only too aware of the direction this confrontation had taken. I guessed that they were giving up a head start in favor of knowing exactly who would be chasing after them.

I was sure Aro saw the same thing I did. He turned away, walking back to his guard with a measured peace. He stopped in front of them and address them in a clear voice.

"We are outnumbered, dearest ones," he said. "We can expect no outside help. Should we leave this question undecided to save ourselves?"

"No, master," they whispered in unison.

"Is the protection of our world worth perhaps the loss of some of our number?"

"Yes," they breathed. "We are not afraid."

Aro smiled and turned to his black-clad companions.

"Brothers," Aro said somberly, "there is much to consider here."

"Let us counsel," Caius said eagerly.

"Let us counsel," Marcus repeated in an uninterested tone.

Aro turned his back to us again, facing the other ancients. They joined hands to form a black-shrouded triangle.

As soon as Aro's attention was engaged in the silent counsel, two more of their witnesses disappeared silently into the forest. I hoped, for their sakes, that they were fast.

This was it. Carefully, I loosened Renesmee's arms around my neck.

"You remember what I told you?"

Tears welled up in her eyes, but she nodded. "I love you," she whispered.

Edward was watching us now, his topaz eyes wide. Jacob stared at us from the corner of his big dark eye. Sarox and Marlene turned in our direction.

"I love you, too," I said, and then I touched her locket. "More than my own life." I kissed her forehead.

Jacob whined uneasily. Sarox, Marlene, and PJ looked on in sorrow.

I stretched up on my toes and whispered into Jacob's ear. "Wait until they're completely distracted, then run with her. Get as far from this place as you possibly can. When you've gone as far as you can on foot, she has what you need to get you in the air."

Edward's and Jacob's faces were almost identical masks of horror, despite the fact that one of them was an animal.

Renesmee reached for Edward, and he took her in his arms. They hugged each other tightly.

"This is what you kept from me?" he whispered over her head as the puzzles of my secrecy fell into place now.

"From Aro," I breathed.

"Alice?"

I nodded.

His face twisted with understanding and pain. Had that been the expression on my face when I'd finally put together Alice's clues?

Jacob was growling quietly, a low rasp that was as even and unbroken as a purr. His hackles were stuff and his teeth exposed.

Edward kissed Renesmee's forehead and both her cheeks, then he lifted her to Jacob's shoulder. She scrambled agilely onto his back, pulling herself into place within handfuls of his fur, and fit herself easily into the dip between his massive shoulder blades.

Jacob turned to me, his expressive eyes full of agony, the rumbling growl still grating through his chest.

"You're the only one we could ever trust her with," I murmured to him. "If you didn't love her so much, I could never bear this. I know you can protect her, Jacob."

He whined again, and dipped his head to butt it against my shoulder.

"I know," I whispered. "I love you, too, Jake. You'll always be my best man."

A tear the size of a baseball rolled into the russet fur beneath his eye.

Edward leaned his head against the same shoulder where he'd placed Renesmee. "Goodbye, Jacob, my brother... my son."

Sarox and Marlene looked on in silent agony.

The others weren't oblivious to our farewell scene. Their eyes were locked on the silent black triangle, but I could tell they were listening.

"Is there no hope, then?" Carlisle whispered. There was no fear in his voice. Just determination and acceptance.

"There is absolutely hope," I murmured back. _It could be true,_ I told myself. "I only know my own fate."

Edward took my hand. He knew that he was included. When I said _my fate_, there was no question that I meant the two of us. We were just halves of the whole. If he died, I would follow. The universe was centered around us, and I knew that he was feeling exactly the same.

My frozen heart felt a little bit of warmth. My shield started to shake, and I immediately refocused on holding it up. The warmth didn't fade, though. Edward looked down on his chest in unreadability, as if he felt something, too.

Esme's breath was ragged behind me. She moved past us, touching our faces as she passed, to stand beside Carlisle and hold his hand.

Suddenly, we were surrounded by murmured goodbyes and I love you's.

"If we live through this," Garrett whispered to Kate, "I'll follow you anywhere, woman."

"Now he tells me," she muttered.

Sarox and Marlene's joined hands tightened again. He looked over his shoulders to his parents, and they shared a quiet moment. Marlene's parents quickly went to their daughter's side and pulled her into a tight embrace.

Rosalie and Emmett kissed quickly but passionately.

Tia caressed Benjamin's face. He smiled back cheerfully, catching her hand and holding it against his cheek.

The heat in my heart escalated.

What is this?

It reminded me of my transformation into this new body. The venom spread throughout my veins, forming unbearable flames in my body that made me wish for death. The most familiar part was when the fire grew stronger and stronger while entering the last organ: my heart. It struggled with the venom like a raging war that ultimately led to the end of both parties. The burning pain was excruciatingly unbearable. And all I wanted in the past three months was to never be reminded of that experience ever again.

But this was completely different kind of heat. It continued to escalate, but it wasn't painful in the least. Not heat, but a glowing. It was a part of me, a part of my shield. A part of my being.

I looked to Edward. He touched his chest, his face was completely unreadable. And then he turned to me with the same expression. I realized that he was feeling the same heat in his heart. And then we heard it. Our heartbeats, pulsing at the same time. _Thud. Thud. Thud._

"I feel..." we said together, and then said separately.

"Your _heartbeat_," he finished.

"Your _soul_," I finished.

Suddenly our chests emitted real, powerful glows. Literally.


	19. Chapter 18: Bella: Power

BELLA CULLEN

Everyone turned their attention to us now, including the Volturi ancients. Most of them were mystified by our united glow, everyone besides Sarox, Marlene, PJ, Max, Donald, Goofy, King Mickey, Riku, Sora, and Kairi. Sarox's Keyblade appeared into his hand; its tip shined with the same light.

Max and Goofy smiled brightly. "Looks like we found another pair," Max said.

"Sarox," Marlene called him.

Sarox nodded, and then he turned his attention to us. His thoughts stopped midway, and looked over his shoulder to the Volturi for a moment, then turned to the humans behind us.

"Hey, guys!" he began. "Why don't we show 'em the power of the Keyblade? Let's draw our powers together and awake Bella and Edward's powers."

I was mystified. What did he mean by _my and Edward's powers_? I thought our powers were clear.

Sarox pointed his Keyblade at us. Then I realized that his parents, King Mickey, and Marlene were doing the same. Distinctive sounds of clinging keys and keyrings came up behind us. They were all pointing at us.

They chanted in unison:

_Sacred key,_

_Unleash your untapped power._

_Shine away the darkness_

_and preserve the world with your "light"._

_Master of the Keyblade._

_AWAKE!_

Tips of their weapons shot sharp beams of light; they moved so fast that not even a vampire could evade. The beams touched our skins. I felt it pierce into my heart. My shield started to shake again. I was too stunned to make any movement.

What's happening?

The power of the beams did no damage. Rather they ran through my core like low voltage of electrical shocks. My focus split instantly, and the shield automatically retracted into my mind again, exposing everyone. I felt the glow on my chest as it began to detach from my body, though the pulse on my frozen heart continued, like they were connected by an invisible, thick thread. It was impossible to be completely disconnected from each other.

The round glow on Edward's chest floated from his body, too. And then, they instantly exploded at the same time. Replacing the orbs were a pair of mysterious swords in Olympic style, hovering in midair while retaining a faint glow. No, not swords. _Keyblades._

Like half of the humans in our line, we were each given a Keyblade.

The one in front of Edward had a bronze handle equipped with a topaz gem in the center. A brown string attached the handle to a round golden diamond as a keyring. The blade was pure gold, with long white crystals covering from both sides up to the sharp teeth that gave room to a third golden gem.

"_Soul of Gold,_" he named it. His eyes completely astonished.

The Keyblade in front of me was almost an exact duplicate of Edward's. It had a similar style had a bronze handle equipped with a round red gem in the center, instead of gold. Attaching the handle to the red diamond keyring was a pink thread tied in a bow on both ends. The blade shined with a long and large red diamond engulfed in gold on both sides and ran from the end of the handle down to the teeth. Unlike Edward's, the teeth were rounder, and in the center was a same ruby gem. It appealed to me then, that it was rounder and more elegant, and more radiant than the red diamonds on the handle and keyring.

"_Ruby Sun._" The name came from my heart.

We reached out to the weapons. Once we grabbed the handles, the illumination on the weapons faded and gravity immediately took place. I could feel the light gravity that pulled the weapon in my hand down toward the ground, nothing even a human couldn't handle, though.

I realized then that these were not only our weapons, but a symbol of our _love_. A manifestation.

My shield extracted from my mind again, protecting everyone once more without their notice.

Sarox and his company smiled delightfully at us, like we were a treasure chest they'd just dug up.

"Guess you two were two peas in a pod," he commented.

We were surrounded by shock and surprise glances now; Aro was most amazed of them all. Renesmee smiled at us while Jacob stared from the corner of his eye.

I didn't see all the expressions. I was suddenly distracted by a fluttering pressure against the outside of my shield I couldn't tell where it came from, but it felt like it was directed at the edges of our group, Siobhan and Liam particularly. The pressure did no damage, and then it was gone.

"Be careful, everyone," I warned them. "They're attacking."

My warning turned everyone's attention back to the unmoving Volturi.

"Chelsea is trying to break our bindings," Edward whispered. "But she can't find them..." His eyes cut to me. "Are you doing that?"

I smiled grimly at him. "I've been _all_ over this since the beginning."

Edward lurched away from me suddenly, his hand reaching out toward Carlisle. At the same time, I felt a much sharper jab against the shield where it wrapped protectively around Carlisle's light. It wasn't painful, but it wasn't pleasant, either.

"Carlisle, are you all right?" Edward gasped frantically.

"Yes. Why?"

"Jane," Edward answered.

The moment that he said her name, a dozen pointed attacks hit in a second, stabbing all over the plastic shield, aimed at fifteen different bright spots. I flexed, making sure the shield was undamaged. It didn't seem like Jane had been able to pierce it. I glanced around quickly; everyone was fine.

"Incredible," Edward said.

"Bella is shielding us, isn't she?" Sarox whispered to Edward.

He nodded.

Sarox gave me an impressed look, but I didn't have time to be adored.

"Why aren't they waiting for the decision?" Tanya hissed.

"Normal procedure," Edward answered brusquely. "They usually incapacitate those on trial so they can't escape."

I looked across at Jane, who was staring at our group with furious disbelief. I was pretty sure that, besides me, she'd never seen anyone remain standing through her fiery assault.

It probably wasn't mature. But I figured it would take Aro about half a second to guess - if he hadn't already - that my shield was more powerful than Edward had known; I already had a big target on my forehead and there was really no point in trying to keep the extent of what I could do a secret, especially since they witnessed me and Edward receive the Keyblades. So I grinned a huge, smug smile right at Jane.

Her eyes narrowed, and I felt another stab of pressure, this time directed at me.

I pressed my lips wider, showing my teeth.

Jane let out a high-pitched scream of snarl. Everyone jumped, even the disciplined guard. Everyone but the ancients, who looked at our line in shock, except for Marcus. They knew that Jane and Chelsea were attacking, and that none of their powers made any effects on us whatsoever.

Jane's twin caught her arm as she prepared to spring.

The Romanians started chuckling with dark anticipation.

"I told you it was our time," Vladimir said to Stefan.

"Just look at the witch's face," Stefan chortled.

Alec patted his sister's shoulder soothingly, then tucked her under his arm. He turned his face to us, perfectly smooth, completely angelic.

I waited for some pressure, some sign of his attack, but I felt nothing. He continued to stare in our direction, his pretty face composed. I clutched at Edward's shoulder.

"Are you okay?" I choked out.

"Yes," he whispered.

"Is Alec trying?"

Edward nodded. "His gift is slower than Jane's. It creeps. It will touch us in a few seconds."

I saw it then, when I had a clue of what to look for.

A strange clear haze was oozing across the snow, nearly invisible against the white. It reminded me of a mirage - a slight warping of the view, a hint of the shimmer. I pushed my shield out from Carlisle and the rest of the front line, afraid to have the slinking mist too close when it hit. What if it stole right through my intangible protection? Should we run?

A low rumbling murmured through the ground under our feet, and a gust of wind blew the snow into sudden flurries between our position and the Volturi's. Benjamin had seen the creeping threat, too, and now he tried to blow the mist away from us. The snow made it easy to see where he threw the wind, but the mist didn't react in any way. It was like air blowing harmlessly through a shadow; the shadow was immune.

The ancients waited and watched as it approached us.

"Thunder!" Donald yelled out, his magic staff pointed at the mist.

A strong bolt of lightning dropped on the ground, exploding the snow and making a huge hole on the ground about ten feet from us. It did no damage to the mist, just like the wind. With a racking groan, a deep, narrow fissure opened in a long zigzag across the middle of the clearing.

The earth rocked under my feet for a moment. The drifts of snow plummeted into the hole, but the mist skipped right across it, as untouched by gravity as it had been by wind and lightning.

Aro and Caius watched the opening earth with wide eyes. Marcus looked in the same direction without emotion.

The wind shrieked louder but didn't change the course of the wind. Jane was smiling now.

Sarox held his Keyblade in front of his chest while holding Marlene with his other hand; he was ready to fight in order to protect her.

"Wak!" Donald screamed in panic.

He jumped onto Goofy's back, causing great imbalance on his feet before Riku supported him on the shoulders. PJ looked worried while Max readied his shield.

And then the mist hit a wall.

I could taste it soon as it touched my shield - it had a dense, sweet, cloying flavor.

The mist curled upward, seeking a breach, a weakness. It found none. The fingers of searching haze twisted upward and around, trying to find a way in, and in the process illustrating the astonishing size of the protective screen.

There were gasps on both sides of Benjamin's gorge.

"Well done, Bella!" Benjamin cheered in a low voice.

My smile returned.

Sarox and Marlene glared us now.

"How'd you get so powerful so fast?" he asked with a large grin on his face.

"When you know the key, you can twist it," I replied, a little smug on my smile.

I could see Alec's narrowed eyes, doubt on his face for the first time as his mist swirled harmlessly around the edges of my shield.

And then I knew that I could do this. Obviously I would be the number-one priority, the first one to die, but as long as I held, we were on more than equal footing with the Volturi; _way _more than equal footing. We still had Benjamin, Zafrina, the Keyblade wielders, the magicians and the Princesses of Heart; they had no supernatural help at all. As long as I held. I was suddenly glad that we had gathered so many people from the other worlds. They made us so much stronger than the Volturi would ever imagine. And now, Edward and I were stronger, too.

"I'm going to have to concentrate," I whispered to Edward. "When it comes to hand to hand, it's going to be harder to keep the shield around the right people."

"I'll keep them off you."

"No. You _have _to get to Demetri. Zafrina, Sarox and Marlene will keep them away from me."

Marlene and Sarox nodded in synchronization.

Zafrina nodded solemnly. "No one will touch this young one," she promised Edward.

"I'd go after Jane and Alec myself, but I can do more good here."

"Jane's mine," Kate hissed. "She needs a taste of her own medicine."

"And Alec owes me many lives, but I will settle for his," Vladimir growled from the other side. "He's mine."

"I just want Caius," Tanya said evenly.

"We will help," Donald promised as he readied his magic staff, his previous fear gone. PJ was instantly at his side, ready to help with his own magic.

The others started divvying up opponents, too, but they were quickly interrupted.

Aro, staring calmly at Alec's ineffective mist, finally spoke.

"Before we vote," he began.

I shook my head angrily. I was tired of this charade. The bloodlust was igniting in me again, and I was sorry that I would help the others more by standing still. I _wanted_ to fight.

"Let me remind you," Aro continued, "whatever the council's decision, there need be no violence here."

Edward snarled out a dark laugh.

Aro stared at him sadly. "It will be a regrettable waste to our kind to lose any of you, or the people that have come from other worlds. But you especially, young Edward, and your newborn mate. the Volturi would be glad to welcome many of you into our ranks. Bella, Benjamin, Zafrina, Kate. Sarox, Marlene, Max, PJ, I have learned from Edward that you have an important task to fulfill. I believe we can help you, if you would agree to join us. There are many choices before you. Consider them."

Chelsea's attempt to sway us fluttered impotently against my shield. Aro's gaze swept across our hard eyes, looking for my indication of hesitation. From his expression, he found none.

Then, he turned to Sarox.

"Sarox?"

He returned an angry expression, and said. "We all made our decision from the moment we came here. We all knew what this meant, and the consequences of it. But, Aro, the decision to fight is not in our hands. It's in yours. It's your choice to either fight us, who have sided with the Cullens, or leave us in peace."

Aro became wordless.

"And to show you how serious I am," Sarox continued, holding his Keyblade in the front. "I will be ready to defend everyone with full power. _Light!_"

His arms and legs crouched into his torso like a ball, and then released the same time as invisible energy exploded harmlessly from his body. In an instant, his clothes changed to whole new colors. Silver, white and grey now dominated his jacket, pants, and shoes. The white inside shirt was now covered in black, with white wavy lines that were originally blue. The edges of his jacket and pants displayed a mysterious symbol of an eye with a wind pattern. His new outfit was embodied by a strong light that went in and out like a pulsing heart. In addition, he was surrounded by two large sparkles that went horizontally around his torso with white wisps following them like tails. His clothes weren't the only things that changed; the Keyblade was no longer in his hand. Instead, it hovered closely behind his back... with an extra black Keyblade beside it. It was slightly longer than the other one, with two bat-like wings extended downward as hilt guard with an amethyst emblem in the middle. His feet weren't in touch with the ground, either; they were hovering a few millimeters above it, seemingly unaffected by the gravity of the earth. His hair and sleeves and pant legs moved swiftly like they were being moved by the wind, even though Benjamin had ceased his blow.

His new, gracious form released an invisible radiance that covered the whole inside of my shield. It was a hundred times more mesmerizing than the first time we'd met, when his clothes were in their crimson red incarnation. Even with my shield and my Keyblade combined with Edward's, we wouldn't be able to compare with his strength. It was beyond everyone's light in the clearing, except for seven others, whom I knew were Marlene and her fellow princesses. It took all my concentration to keep the shield up before it faltered. The hazy mist still swirled around the edges of it. If I lost concentration, it would invade us in an instant and they would win.

He looked cheerfully to Marlene for a moment, then turned to his parents, Max, PJ, and King Mickey, and then finally, he turned back to Aro, his face serious again.

"Now make your decision, Aro," Sarox said in a determined voice. "For we have made ours."

I refocused on Aro and his company again.

The guards had now lifted from their ready positions, unsure how to act.

"Let us vote, then," Aro said after he forced himself out of the amazement that everyone was having at Sarox now. He said with apparent reluctance.

My focus was pointed at Aro now. I knew he was desperate to keep Edward and me, to imprison us the way he had hoped to enslave Alice, especially now that we'd gained the Keyblades. But this fight was too big. He would not win if we lived. I was fiercely glad to be so powerful that I left him no way _not_ to kill me.

Caius spoke with eager haste. "The child is an unknown quantity. There is no reason to allow such a risk to exist. It must be destroyed, along with all who protect it. Same goes for the light." He pointed at the glowing Sarox, his eyes burning with rage.

I fought back a shriek of defiance to answer his cruelty.

Marcus lifted his uncaring eyes, seeming to look through us as he voted.

"I see no immediate danger. The child is safe enough for now. We can always reevaluate later. Let us leave in peace." His voice was even fainter than his brothers' feathery sighs.

Caius's anticipatory grin did not falter. It was as though Marcus hadn't spoken at all.

"I must make the deciding vote, it seems," Aro mused.

Suddenly, Edward stiffened at my side. "Yes!" he hissed.

I risked a glance at him. His face glowed with an expression of triumph that I didn't understand - it was the expression of an angel of destruction might wear while the world burned. Beautiful and terrifying.

There was a low reaction from the guard, an uneasy murmur.

"Aro?" Edward called, nearly shouted, undisguised victory in his voice. Maybe Sarox's unexpected power can given him confidence.

Aro hesitated for a second, assessing this new mood warily before he answered. "Yes, Edward? You have something further...?"

"Perhaps," Edward said pleasantly, controlling his excitement. "First, if I could clarify one point?"

"Certainly," Aro said, raising his eyebrows, nothing now but polite interest in his tone. My teeth ground together; Aro was never more dangerous than when he was gracious.

"The danger you foresee from my daughter - this stems entirely from our inability to guess how she will develop? That is the crux of the matter?"

"Yes, friend Edward," Aro agreed. "If we could but be positive... be _sure_ that, as she grows, she will be able to stay concealed from the human world - not endanger the safety of our obscurity..." He trailed off, shrugging.

"So, if we could only know for sure," Edward suggested, "exactly what she will become... then there would be no need for a council at all?"

"If there was some way to be _absolutely _sure," Aro agreed, his featherly voice slightly more shrill. He couldn't see where Edward was leading him. Neither could I. "Then, yes, there would be no question to debate."

"And we would part in peace, good friends once again?" Edward asked with a hint of irony.

Even more shrill. "Of course, my young friend. Nothing would please me more."

Edward chuckled exultantly. "Then I do have something more to offer."

Aro's eyes narrowed. "She is absolutely unique. Her future can only be guessed at."

"Not absolutely unique," Edward disagreed. "Rare, certainly, but not one of a kind."

I fought the back as it threatened to distract me. And, as I struggled to focus, I felt again the sharp, stabbing pressure against my protective hold pointed toward both me and Sarox.

"Aro, would you ask Jane to stop attacking my friend and my wife?" Edward asked courteously. "We are still discussing evidence."

Aro raised one hand. "Peace, dear ones. Let us hear him out."

The pressure disappeared. Jane bared her teeth at me; I couldn't help grinning back at her.

"Alice, why don't you join us?" Edward called loudly.

"Alice," Esme whispered in shock.

Alice!

Alice! Alice! Alice!

"Alice! Alice!" other voices murmured around me.

"Alice," Aro breathed.

Relief and violent joy surged through me. It took all my will to keep the shield where it was. Alec's mist still tested, seeking a weakness - Jane would see if I left any holes.

And then I heard them running through the forest, flying, closing the distance as quickly as they could with no slowing effort at silence.

Both sides were motionless in expectation. The Volturi witnesses scowled in fresh confusion.

Then Alice danced into the clearing from the southwest, and I felt like the bliss of seeing her face again might knock me off my feet. Jasper was only inches behind her, his sharp eyes fierce. Close after them ran three strangers; the first was a tall, muscular female with wild dark hair - obviously Kachiri. She had the same elongated limbs and features as the other Amazons, even more pronounced in her case.

The next was a small olive-toned female vampire with a braid of black hair bobbing against her back. Her deep burgundy eyes flitted nervously around the confrontation before her.

And the last was a young man... not quite as fast nor quite as fluid in his run. His skin is impossibly rich, dark brown. His wary eyes flashed across the gathering, and they were the color of warm teak. His hair was black and braided, too, like the woman's, though not as long. He was beautiful.

As he neared us, a new sound sent shock waves through the watching crowd - the sound of another heartbeat, accelerated with exertion.

Alice leaped lightly over the edges of the dissipating mist that lapped at my shield and came to a sinuous stop at Edward's side. I reached out to touch her, and so did Edward, Esme and Carlisle. There wasn't time for any other welcome. Jasper and the others followed her through the shield.

All the guard watched, speculation in their eyes, as the latecomers crossed the invisible border without difficulty. The brawny ones, Felic and the others like him, focused their suddenly hopeful eyes on me. They had not been sure of what my shield repelled, but it was clear not that it would not stop a physical attack. As soon as Aro gave the order, the blitz would ensue, me the only object. I wondered how many Zafrina would able to blind, and how much that would slow them. Long enough for Kate and Vladimir to take Jane and Alec out of the equation? Long enough for Merlin to help his friends escape? Long enough for Sarox to use his full power? That was all I could ask for.

Edward, despite his absorption in the coup he was directing, stiffened furiously in response to their thoughts.. He controlled himself and spoke to Aro again.

"Alice has been searching for her own witnesses these last weeks," he said to the ancient. "And she does not come back empty-handed. Alice, why don't you introduce the witnesses you've brought?"

Caius snarled. "The time for witnesses is past! Cast your vote, Aro!"

Aro raised one finger to silence his brother, his eyes glued to Alice's face.

Alice stepped forward lightly and introduced the strangers. "This is Huilen and her nephew, Nahuel."

Hearing her voice... it was like she'd never left.

Caius's eyes tightened as Alice named the relationship between the newcomers. The Volturi witnesses hissed among themselves. The vampire world was changing, and everyone could feel it.

"Speak, Huilen," Aro commanded. "Give us the witness you were brought to bear."

The slight woman looked to Alice nervously. Alice nodded in encouragement, and Kachiri put her long hand on the little vampire's shoulder.

"I am Huilen," the woman announced in clear but strangely accented English. As she continued, it was apparent she had prepared herself to tell this story, that she had practiced. It flowed like a well-known nursery rhyme. "A century and a half ago, I lived with my people, the Mapuche. My sister was Pire. Our parents named her after the snow on the mountains because of her fair skin. And she was very beautiful - too beautiful. She came to me one day in secret and told me of the angel that found her in the woods, that visited her by night. I warned her." Huilen shook her head mournfully. "As if the bruises on her skin were not warning enough. I knew it was the Libishomen of our legends, but she would not listen. She was bewitched.

"She told me when she was sure her dark angel's child was growing inside her. I didn't try to discourage her from her plan to run away - I knew even our father and mother would agree that the child must be destroyed, Pire with it. I went with her into the deepest parts of the forest. She searched for her demon angel but found nothing. I cared for her, hunted for her when her strength failed. She ate the animals raw, drinking their blood. I needed no more confirmation of what she carried in her womb. I hoped to save her life before I killed the monster.

"But she loved the child inside her. She called him Nahuel, after the jungle cat, when he grew strong and broke her bones - and loved him still.

"I could not save her. The child ripped his way free of her, and she died quickly, begging all the while that I would care for her Nahuel. Her dying wish - and I agreed.

"He bit me, though, when I tried to lift him from her body. I crawled away into the jungle to die. I didn't get far - the pain was too much. But he found me; the newborn child struggled through the underbrush to my side and waited for me. When the pain ended, he was curled against my side, sleeping.

"I cared for him until he was able to hunt for himself. We hunted the villages around our forest, staying to ourselves. We have never come so far from our home, but Nahuel wished to see the child here."

Huilen bowed her head when she was finished and moved back so she was partially hidden behind Kachiri.

Aro's lips were pursed. He stared at the dark-skinned youth.

"Nahuel, you are one hundred and fifty years old?" he questioned.

"Give or take a decade," he answered in a clear, beautifully warm voice. His accent was barely noticeable. "We don't keep track."

"And you reached maturity at what age?"

"About seven years after my birth, more or less, I was full grown."

"You have not changed since then?"

Nahuel shrugged. "Not that I've noticed."

I felt a shudder tremble through Jacob's body. I didn't want to think about this yet. I would wait till the danger was past and I could concentrate.

"And your diet?" Aro pressed, seeming interested in spite of himself.

"Mostly blood, but some human food, too. I can survive on either."

"You were able to create an immortal?" As Aro gestured to Huilen, his voice was abruptly intense. I refocused on my shield; perhaps he was seeking a new excuse.

"Yes, but none of the rest can."

A shocked murmur ran through all four groups.

Aro's eyebrows shot up. "The rest?"

"My sisters." Nahuel shrugged again.

Aro stared wildly for a moment before composing his face.

"Perhaps you should tell the rest of your story, for there seems to be more."

Nahuel frowned.

"My father came looking for me a few years after my mother's death." His handsome face distorted slightly. "He was pleased to find me." Nahuel's tone suggested the feeling was not mutual. "He had two daughters, but no sons. He expected me to join him, as my sisters had.

"He was surprised I was not alone. My sisters are not venomous, but whether that's due to gender or a random chance... who knows? I already had my family with Huilen, and I was not _interested_" - he twisted the word - "in making a change. I see him from time to time. I have a new sister; she reached maturity about ten years back."

"Your father's name?" Caius asked through gritted teeth.

"Joham," Nahuel answered. "He considers himself a scientist. He thinks he's creating a new super-race." He made no attempt to disguise the disgust in his tone.

Caius looked at me. "Your daughter, is she venomous?" he demanded harshly.

"No," I responded. Nahuel's head snapped up at Caius's question, and his teak eyes turned to bore into my face.

Caius looked to Aro for confirmation, but Aro was absorbed in his own thoughts. He pursed his lips and stared at Carlisle, and then Edward, Riku, King Mickey, Sora, Sarox, and at last his eyes rested on me.

Caius growled. "We take care of the aberration here, and then follow it south," he urged Aro.

Aro stared into my eyes for a long, tense moment. I had no idea what he was searching for, or what he found, but after he had measured me for that moment, something in his face changed, a faint shift in the set of his mouth and eyes, and I knew that Aro had made his decision.

"Brother," he said softly to Caius. "There appears to be no danger. This is an unusual development, but I see no threat. These half-vampire children are much like us, it appears."

"Is that your vote?" Caius demanded.

"It is."

Caius scowled. "And this Joham? This immortal so fond of experimentation?"

"Perhaps we _should _speak with him," Aro agreed.

"Stop Joham if you will," Nahuel said flatly. "But leave my sisters be. They are innocent."

Aro nodded, his expression solemn. And then he turned back to his guard with a warm smile.

"Dear ones," he called. "We do not fight today."

The guard nodded in unison. The mist dissipated swiftly, but I held my shield in place. Maybe this was _another_ trick.

I analyzed their expressions as Aro turned back to us. His face was as benign as ever, but unlike before, I sensed a strange blankness behind the facade. As if his scheming was over. Caius was clearly incensed, but his rage was turned inward now; he was resigned. Marcus looked... bored; there really was no other word fo rit. The guard was impassive and disciplined again; there were no individuals among them, just the whole. They were in formation, ready to depart. The Volturi witnesses were still wary; one another another, they departed, scattering into the woods. As their numbers dwindled, the remaining sped up. Soon they were all gone.

Aro held his hands out to us, almost apologetic. Behind him, the larger part of the guard, along with Caius, Marcus, and the silent, mysterious wives, were already drifting quickly away, their formation precise once again. Only the four that seemed to be his personal guardians lingered with him.

"I'm so glad this could be resolved without violence," he said sweetly. "My friend, Carlisle - how pleased I am to call you friend again! I hope there are no hard feelings. I know you understand the strict burden that our duty places on our shoulders."

"Leave us in peace, Aro," Carlisle said stiffly. "Please remember that we still have our anonymity to protect her, and keep your guard from hunting in this region."

"Of course, Carlisle," Aro assured him. "I am sorry to earn your disapproval, my dear friend. Perhaps, in time, you will forgive me."

"Perhaps, in time, if you prove a friend to us again."

Aro bowed his head, the picture of remorse, and drifted backward for a moment before he turned around. We watched in silence as the last five Volturi disappeared into the trees.

It was very quiet. I did not drop my shield. And Sarox did not undo his transformation.

"Is it really over?" I whispered to Edward.

His smile was huge. "Yes. They've given up. Like all bullies, they're cowards underneath the swagger." He chuckled.

Alice laughed with him. "Seriously, people. They're not coming back. Everybody can relax now."

There was another beat of silence.

"Of all the rotten luck," Stefan muttered.

And then it hit.

Cheers erupted. Deafening howls filled the clearing. Maggie pounded Siobhan on the back. Rosalie and Emmett kissed again - longer and more ardently than before. Benjamin and Tia were locked in each other's arms, as were Carmen and Eleazar. Esme held Alice and Jasper in a tight embrace. Carlisle was warmly thanking the newcomers who had saved us. Kachiri stood very close to Zafrina and Senna, their fingers interlocked. Garrett picked Kate up off the ground and swung her in a circle.

Stefan spit on the snow. Vladimir ground his teeth together with a sour expression.

Marlene embraced her parents, as were Robert and Giselle, Troy and Gabriella, Taran and Eilonwy, Rapunzel and Eugene, and Zidane and Garnet. Will and Layla hug while they magically floated in midair.

Sarox fell to the ground again as he undid the transformation; then he was instantly wrapped in the arms of Marlene, his parents, Max, Goofy, PJ, and Donald. Jiminy jumped up to his shoulder and tickled his face cheerfully. Riku, His Majesty, and Merlin were standing beside them, smiling but not participating.

And I un-summoned my Keyblade and half-climbed the giant russet wolf to rip my daughter off his back and then crushed her into my chest. Edward's arms were around us in the same second, his Keyblade was nowhere to be seen either.

"Nessie, Nessie, Nessie," I crooned.

Jacob laugh his big, barky laugh and poked the back of my head with his nose.

"Shut up," I murmured.

"I get to stay with you?" Nessie demanded.

"Forever," I promised her.

We had forever. And Nessie was going to be fine and healthy and strong. Like the half-human Nahuel, in a hundred and fifty years she would still be young. And we would all be together.

Happiness expanded like an explosion inside me - so extreme, so violent that I wasn't sure I'd survive it.

"Forever," Edward echoed in my ear.

I couldn't speak anymore. I lifted my head and kissed him with a passion that might possibly set the forest on fire.

I wouldn't have noticed.


	20. Chapter 19: Jacob: Celebration

JACOB BLACK

It was an afternoon of celebrations. Nothing could ruin this joyful moment. We had won, and Bella and Edward were alive. And most importantly, Nessie was safe and happy again.

We departed for the Cullen residence. Sam and his pack returned to Forks to inform Emily and my dad the results of today's excitement: they would be thrilled. I knew Sam and our two packs were dying to leave the vampire residence, it was something I could relate. I wanted nowhere near any of the filthy bloodsuckers, but being away from Nessie went against the grain. No, it went against my _existence_ to be away from her, especially today.

Plus, it was the bloodsuckers that saved everything; they saved my families. I had to tolerate them for that credit.

Thankfully, the Romanians took off before we'd stopped celebrating, they were upset with how things turned out. I, on the other hand, was relieved that they were gone. The farther away they were from us, the better. If they remained behind, I could not promise that I wouldn't bite on their legs now that their purpose was over.

It did not take long before the others started leaving, too. Benjamin and Tia were anxious to follow Amun and Kebi and let them know how everything went. Jasper's two old friends left after they had a short conversation with each other.

The stretchy Amazons bloodsuckers returned to their forest a few hours later, but not before Zafrina made Bella promise to bring Nessie to see her someday. I hissed quietly at that agreement. Although I was grateful of their help, they were still dangerous vampires. The enemy of werewolves.

_Wait, what was I thinking?_

Edward and Aro had confirmed their suspicion. Me and my people; we were shapeshifters who could morph into wolves. Not _real_ werewolves. The thought made me a little angry. All this time, we were convinced by our ancestors' stories that we were true werewolves. Somewhere in our line, one of our ancestors must have gotten the story wrong and passed it on thinking _that_ was the story.

I decided to let it go. No matter the twist, this wasn't nearly as important as today's victory.

The Irish coven continued the exodus.

"Well done, Siobhan," Carlisle complimented as they said goodbye.

"Ah, the power of wishful thinking," she answered sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

I had no clue of what they were talking about. The best I could think of was she had a gift or something, and she had used it while we didn't know during the confrontation. I turned to Edward in question.

He whispered quietly in my ear. "Carlisle believes Siobhan has the power to visualize an outcome of a situation and make it come true if she concentrates hard enough."

I took it in for a moment, and then shook my head in disbelief. Today's surprises just kept coming without so much as a warning, and the worst part was already over.

Siobhan continued as if she never heard us. "Of course, this isn't over. The Volturi won't forget what happened here."

Edward was the one who answered that. "They've been seriously shaken; their confidence is shattered. But, yes, I'm sure they'll recover from the blow someday. And then..." His eyes tightened. "I imagine they'll try to pick us off separately."

"Alice will warn when they intend to strike," Siobhan said in a sure voice. "And we'll gather again. Perhaps the time will come when our world is ready to be free of the Volturi altogether."

"That time may come," Carlisle replied. "If it does, we'll stand together."

"Yes, my friend, we will," Siobhan agreed. "And how we fail when _I_ will it otherwise?" She let out a great peal of laughter.

"Exactly," Carlisle said. He and Siobhan embraced, and then he took Liam's hand. "Try to find Alistair and tell him what happened. I'd hate to think of him hiding under a rock for the next decade."

_Hiding under a rock the next decade,_ I repeated in my head.

Siobhan laughed again. Maggie hugged both Nessie and Bella, and then she was gone with Siobhan and Liam.

The Denalis were the last to leave.

The celebration atmosphere was too much for Tanya and Kate. They need time to mourn for their lost sister. The male goldie-locks departed with them - which I assumed he would be with them from now on.

The only ones who stayed were Huilen and her nephew Nahuel, the only half vampire that was more related to Nessie's traits and species. The one who helped us in more than one way.

* * *

"All right, guys, work your magic," Sarox said excitedly.

_Ooh, here comes the magic,_ I thought teasingly.

PJ, and Donald readied their staves: Merlin picked out a straight, wooden stick from his black leather bag, and then they wiggled their items together and pointed at the dining tables, which had gone a bit dusty since Esme stopped dusting it. Mysterious sparks generated from the tips of their magical staffs, and burst into fireworks and flew horizontally to the table. The harmless fireworks grew upon hitting it and grew. After a few seconds the sparks quickly faded and formed a white rectangular Christmas cake that covered half the table. And then, everyone dug in to the celebration cake while the vampire guests either remained in the rest of the mansion or departed, but the spirit was in everyone's heart.

"Oh my goodness," I amazed at the first bite in my mouth.

_Sam and the others are gonna be sorry to hear what they've missed,_ I thought to myself. "How did you make something this good?" I asked. "It's even better than Emily's baking!"

"Magic is my forte," Merlin answered proudly, wiggling his wand.

Sarox used a knife to cut a slice of cake and handed it to Marlene on a platter, then cut another piece for himself. Max and Goofy laughed in an "A-hyuck" sound while stuffing their mouths with cake.

A tiny finger touched the back of my arm. I turned around; not that I needed to know who it was.

"What is it, Nessie?" I asked.

She was cradled in Bella's arms; and I knew she wouldn't let her go for a while after this morning. Nessie reached out with her hand, and I leaned down to let her finger touch my cheek. And then an image of the cake flashed through my mind.

"You want to try it?"

She nodded.

I turned to PJ and asked. "Hey, dog-boy, do you think you could make another plate? Nessie wants to try one."

PJ nodded politely, then pointed his staff to my hand and a plastic plate and fork appeared in my palm. Nessie grinned as she tasted the cake, it was a first time to see her smile at human food. It felt nice to see her smile with enthusiasm again after these past few weeks. It was finally over. And she will be happy and healthy.


	21. Chapter 20: Sarox: See You Again

SAROX

"See you again, Marlene," Giselle said as she and Marlene embraced on the front porch while everyone prepared to depart home. The celebration atmosphere had begun to fade to silent conversations and small talks.

"You too, Giselle," she remarked.

After a moment, they finally released each other and Giselle backed away until she was closer to Robert.

"Stay in touch, guys," I told them. "Next time we visit, we'll keep the danger to a minimum."

"Wait!" Edward called from the main hall.

We turned to him and saw Bella and Nessie by his side. Jacob was standing behind them. They all had large grins on their faces. Nessie was holding the golden music box the Princesses made for her in her hands.

He spoke as he stepped out from the door. "Nessie wants to open the music box you gave her before you go."

In one brief second, her family, and Huilen and Nahuel, gathered behind the glass windows, eyeing down on the rest of us. They were eager to see what was stored inside, too.

Gabriella, Eilonwy, Rapunzel, Garnet and Layla stepped closer to us and their mates followed. Nessie shifted one hand under the box and the other up on the lid, and slid it open. And then the box blew out an intense, blinding light like harmless energy and extended throughout the porch. The extension ended at the end of the field, closing distance between us and the Gummi Ships, and then sparkles began to gather around to shape seven separate entities. The bright entities grew in different heights and size, and eventually faded into transparent versions of the seven princesses. They had large, happy grins across their lips: the transparent Giselle stepped forth.

"Ah-hahahaha ah-hahahaha ah-hahahahahaha," she began with her usual, opening tone, and then the others joined in the lullaby.

The voices of the transparent princesses spread like a breeze; gentle, soft, and smooth, followed by a comparable dance. Renesmee's lips lifted as she enjoyed the show.

Edward and Jacob grinned largely.

Bella's large grin revealed that she could see images, too. I wasn't surprised, though. The box's images were projected in moving pictures, not by a vampire's illusionary gift. She could not shield this.

Gabriella, Garnet, Eilonwy and Layla surrounded Marlene, Rapunzel, and Giselle in a dancing circle. And then, seven new lights appeared around the circle and reincarnated as transparent versions of Troy, Zidane, Taran, Will, Eugene, Robert and... me. The circle dancing ceased, and the Princesses met their companions. They're hands intertwined, and then they waltzed away in a large circle. We stepped away as the illusions widened the dancing area: not that we needed to make space. It was to help Nessie see the performing more clearly. Small, harmless sparkles began to fill the air as the show went on.

The Princesses sang as they spun around. The male companions spun them around and then released their hands, allowing the Princesses to spin into a circle again. The song did not cease.

As soon as the finale came, the males went into the circle to join their companions, and then swept them off their feet and spun in circulation. After a moment, they put the girls back on their feet. The girls danced away from their companions and stood in a line in front of the Cullen house while the boys backed away. The song slowly came to an end.

The illusion-Giselle stepped forward. "Dear Renesmee," she began. "For you we have created this joyful song."

"As a Christmas gift," Rapunzel took over. "And as a blessing from the seven of us."

"So that if you were to come across difficult times," Garnet said, "this will always remind you of what you have."

Gabriella took over. "You will always remember the blessings that you have been bestowed by your loved ones."

"Like nature has its own course, you will always be surrounded by love given to you as you have given others," Layla said.

"And no matter the obstacles, you will always have your beloved ones by your side to give you courage," Eilonwy added.

Marlene took the finishing line. "So don't worry, and don't despair, because the bonds that you share with those you love will help you endure sadness, and bring the strength to overcome it. So be brave, and never forget that they will be the light to guide your way."

Finally, they said in one united sentence. "May the light always guide you."

With that, the projections faded into blinding lights again and retracted into the golden box. The lid shut itself as soon as the lights were contained.

Nessie looked up with a wide grin on her face.

"Thank you," she said loudly. "All of you."

They stepped forward.

"You're very welcome, my dear," Giselle answered, and embraced both Bella and Nessie.

Edward stepped forward and thanked her. "Giselle, thank you for composing the song."

Bella eyed at her in shock. "You composed the song?"

Feeling too embarrassed to talk, she giggled and nodded enthusiastically.

"Thank you."

The Princesses embraced Bella, Edward, and Nessie. We said our goodbyes to our friends, and then Merlin sent them home, along with himself.

"You know, Sarox," Dad said as he prepared to depart with Mom. "You make me proud."

I hesitated.

"Even though I have broken the non-meddling rule big time just to help someone in need?"

He considered that for a minute and remarked. "Nothing your old man wouldn't have done in a heartbeat, son."

His Majesty joined in. "Welp, you have broken a major rule, but you also did the right thing. I'm sure many people would have done it in the exact same way. Just try not to repeat that for a while."

Uncontrollable laughter filled the air as we released it from our lungs. Bella, Jacob, Nessie, and Edward were laughing, too.

Mom embraced me after a moment and Dad patted my back. "I love you," she whispered in my ear, and then they departed with Marlene's parents.

Goofy gave an annoying father-to-son speech about responsibility to Max, and then he was gone, too, along with Donald and His Majesty.

Uncle Riku left on his own Gummi Ship. His Majesty had him occupied with another mission before he heard about the situation in Forks and came on his own free will. I was grateful to his involvement, but to drop everything just to help me out was far beyond a surrogate nephew could ask for. I hoped we wouldn't fall into the same situation again... at least for a while.

But most of all, I was grateful to everyone's involvement. Having been away from home made me forget what it was like to lead a normal life. Having Mom and Dad around reminded me of some of it. The thrill of coming home after a long, rough class with the coach; seeing Dad after his "long" delivery trips; Uncle Riku's occasional visits.

I was lucky to have Marlene by my side all this time. The journey had been rough and dangerous, especially when she was facing danger. It always gave me a near-heart attack. But it had also been reassuring and fun; and it was part of her doing. Her presence made me able to have a firm grip on who I still was.

I looked up to the sky after everyone left. She was immediately by my side, holding my hand.

* * *

"So it was a combination of things there at the end but what it really boiled down to was... Bella," Edward explained to his family, the two remaining guests, and us. We sat in the Cullen's dining room.

Aside from us, Huilen and Nahuel were the only ones who stayed. Carlisle was in deep fascinated conversation with Huilen while Edward told the rest of us the story as only he knew it.

"Alice gave Aro the excuse he needed to get out of the fight. If he hadn't been so terrified of Bella, he probably would have gone ahead with their original plan."

"Terrified?" she said skeptically. "Of _me_?"

Jacob shrugged in amusement.

Edward smiled at Bella with an amused look. "When will you ever see yourself clearly?" he said softly.

I had to fight back a light from coming up my throat.

"The Volturi haven't fought a fair fight in about twenty-five hundred years," he continued, louder so everyone could hear. "And they've never, never fought one where they were at a disadvantage. Especially since they gained Jane and Alec, they've only been involved with unopposed slaughterings.

"You should have seen how we looked to them! Usually, Alec cuts off all sense and feeling from their victims while they go through the charade of counsel. That way, no one can run when the verdict is given. But there were stood, ready, waiting, outnumbering them, with weapons and gifts of our own while their gifts were renderred useless by Bella. Aro knew that with Zafrina on our side, they would be the blind ones when the battle commenced. And with Sarox's temporary power boost -," he flashed a grin at me as he explained, "- they would be no match if their gifts were neutralized. And with so many help from our friends, there was a great twist that renderred them defenseless. I'm sure our numbers would have been pretty severely decimated, but _they_ were sure that theirs would be, too. He also knew that Jane and Alec would be the first targets. There was even a very good possibility that they would lose. They've never dealt with that possibility before. They didn't deal with it well today."

"Hard to feel confident when you're surrounded by horse-sized wolves," Emmett laughed, poking Jacob's arm.

"Jacob flashed a grin at him.

"It was the wolves that stopped them in the first place," Bella said.

"Sure was," Jacob agreed.

"Absolutely," Edward agreed. "That was another sight they've never seen before. The true Children of the Moon rarely move in packs, and they are never in much control of themselves. Seventeen enormous regimated wolves was a surprise they weren't prepared for. The sight of twenty-one humans and five animals in human appearance was surprising, too, but not quite as surprising as the wolves. Caius is actually terrified of werewolves. He almost lost a fight with one a few thousand years ago and never got over it."

"So there are _real_ werewolves?" I asked. "With the full moon and silver bullets?"

Jacob snorted. "_Real._ Does that make me imaginary?"

"You know what I mean."

Edward answered. "Full moon, yes. Silver bullets, no - that was just another one of those myths to make humans feel like they have a sporting chance. There aren't many of them left. Caius has had them hunted into near extinction."

"And you never mentioned this because...?" Bella trailed off, waiting.

"It never came up."

Bella rolled her eyes, and Alice laughed, leaning forward - she was tucked under Edward's other arm - to wink at Bella.

She glanced back at her with a cheerful smile, then faded into a frown. I could see where it was coming from. She irritated with Alice's actions.

Alice sighed. "Just get it off your chest, Bella."

"How could you to this to me, Alice?"

"It was necessary."

"Necessary!" Bella snapped harshly. "You had me totally convinced that were all going to die! I've been a wreck for weeks."

"It might have gone that way," she said calmly. "In which case you needed to be prepared to save Nessie."

"But you knew there were other ways, too," she accused. "You knew there was hope. Did it ever occur to you that you could have told me everything? I know Edward had to think we were at a dead end to avoid Aro's suspicion, but you could have to _me_."

She looked at Bella speculatively for a moment. "I don't think so. You're just not that good of an actress."

"This was about my _acting skills_?"

"Oh, take it down an octave, Bella. Do you have any idea how _complicated_this was to set up? I couldn't even be sure that someone like Nahuel existed - all I knew was that I would be looking for something I couldn't see! try to imagine searching for a blind spot - not the easiest thing I've ever done. Plus we had to send back the key witnesses, like we weren't in enough of a hurry. And then keeping my eyes open all the time in case you decided to throw me any more instructions. At some point you're going to have to tell me what exactly is in Rio -," I turned my glance to Bella while Alice continued, "Before any of _that_, I had to try to see every trick the Volturi might come in with and give you what few clues I could so you would be ready for their strategy, and I only had a few hours to trace out all the possibilities. Most of all, I had to make sure you'd all believe that I was ditching out on you, because Aro had to be positive that yo0u had nothing left up your sleeves or he never would have committed to an out the way he did. And if you think I didn't feel like a schmuck -"

"Okay, okay!" Bella interrupted. "Sorry! I know it was rough for you, too. It's just that... well, I missed you like crazy, Alice. Don't do that to me again."

Alice's trilling laugh rang through the room. "I missed you, too, Bella. So forgive me, and try to be satisfied with being the superhero of the day."

We laughed, and Bella ducked into Nessie's hair, probably out of embarrassment. She wasn't known to fancying attention. I could guess thus far from her attitude. Nessie supported her cheekbones.

Edward suddenly turned to the four of us. "So Sarox, is this your real job?"

"What real job?" Jacob asked, his expression puzzled.

Edward turned to him for a moment. "Finding other Keyblade masters and awakening their powers." He pulled his hand from Alice and summoned his Keyblade without sticking into anyone's eye. "It's been their job to find us all along."

"Why?"

"Because right now there's something coming for all of us," I explained before Edward could say anything. "Darkness has been roaming the worlds, devouring them one after another. That's why King Mickey sent me, Marlene, Max, and PJ on this mission. Whatever dark power beckons, it's awakening other Keyblade masters in separate worlds. But to awaken their powers is for me to travel the worlds, and unlock them. And at the same time protect the worlds from falling into the hands of darkness."

"And that's also what the seven Princesses are for," Edward said, taking my line. "They hold more power than anything with light. If they all get captured, whoever's behind this will use them to open the door to darkness, and our worlds will end immediately. Sarox's other job is to find them all, and protect them. Thankfully, they're all under protection now, but the darkness is still causing trouble around the worlds."

"Oh, so that's why you're traveling," Emmett said.

"And it seems like your world is protected now," I commented, looking to Edward and Bella. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't mean that you vampires aren't strong enough to do it, but to protect your world's core is the job of a Keyblade master."

Emmett nodded jokingly and Rosalie laughed along.

After a moment, Edward began to analyze what had happened in the meadow today, declaring that it was Bella's shield that made the Volturi run away in fear. Jasper and Emmett looked on in interest.

As much as I wanted to stay longer, I knew the time had come for us to continue our quest. Now that my two jobs were done, there was no further reason to stay. I looked to Marlene. She gave me my favorite smile and nodded. I looked over to Max and PJ, who smiled silently. I waited.

"It's time, guys," I finally said and rose from my seat.

Marlene, Max, and PJ did the same.

"It's time for us to go, guys. A-hyuck!" Max laughed cheerfully.

Glances focused on us now.

"Yeah, we have a road to hit," PJ said.

"Do you have to go right now?" Emmett asked.

"Better that before you make a joke out of our stay," I joked. "Besides, we got two friends waiting for us on the Gummi Ship. Wouldn't want them to rot."

Everyone laughed, except Nessie. She was frowning. I walked around the table to her side. Marlene was right behind me. I leaned down to Nessie.

"Is everything all right?" I asked.

She placed her warm hand on my cheekbone, and showed a picture of me, Marlene, Max, PJ, Nessie, and Jacob swimming underwater as sea creatures.

I chuckled. Her hand retracted from my face.

"Don't worry, Nessie," I said. "Even though we're apart, we will always be friends. I'm sure that we will cross paths again, and then we'll go swimming again. You have nothing to worry about."

Her frown lightened.

Then, it occurred to me. I was still empowered by Santa's magic orb, my powers were still at high point. There was something I could give her before we leave. PJ had taught me a few tricks to illusion before; all I needed to do was focus on the pictures that I wanted. It would be no problem, I already knew what to concentrate on.

"Now, I'm going to show you something," I told Nessie. "It's something that my mother passed down to me. And now, I think it's time for me to pass it down to you."

Bella looked with a puzzled expression.

I pressed my fingers on both sides of Nessie's cheeks and concentrated. The power flowed through my hands like harmless electric shocks, and I concentrated further on the memory of the story. I concentrated on a beautiful open clearing, then shifted to an enormous orb of light that glowed as strong as the sun itself; then a pitch black cloud covered it like dark covering the sky. There was nothing. And then, small fragments of light lit one after another in the dark space. I gave out the story word by word as I concentrated on the pictures.

_Long ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light._

_Everyone loved the light._

_Then people began to fight over it._

_They wanted the light for themselves._

_And darkness was born in their hearts._

_The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts._

_It covered everything, and the world disappeared._

_But small fragments of the light survived... in the hearts of children._

_With these fragments of light, the children rebuilt the lost worlds._

_It's the world we live in now._

_But the true light still sleeps, deep within the darkness._

_That's why the worlds are still scattered, divided from each other._

_But someday, a door to the innermost darkness will open._

_And the true light will return._

Nessie smiled. I dropped my fingers. The last of my power boost vanished without a trace.

"Thank you, I love it," she said.

"Remember that, always," I told her. "That way, no matter how much you miss us, you will always know that we're connected. Because we're friends. So whenever you think about us, we'll be _here_" I touched her chest, pointing at the core of where we will always be together and then pointed out the large glass window to the mass of glowing stars scattered across the dark sky. "And _there_." She touched my chest too.

Marlene leaned down to hug both Nessie and Bella. "See you again," she said.

"Thank you so much for everything," Bella murmured.

Everyone rose from their seats for one final goodbye as soon as Marlene leaned back up. Esme hugged the four of us wide and tightly. "Don't be a stranger," she murmured.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Marlene promised.

Carlisle shook our hands in gratitude; Rosalie thanked in a common tone - she wasn't used to being humble. Emmett and Jacob punched our shoulders lightly.

"Come back again soon, I'd like to go swimming again," Jacob said.

"Sure," PJ promised in my place.

Alice approached with Jasper behind her.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "I've been watching your moves. You've done more than we could ever ask for. Thank you so much for protecting my family when I couldn't."

"You're welcome," I replied. "And it's understandable what you did. You were using your own ways to protect your family. And you were right to do it the way you did."

She smiled at me.

Edward came forth. "Thank you for everything. Sarox, Marlene, Max, PJ."

"We'll see you again soon," I promised and then turned serious. "This world is under your protection now."

He nodded.

* * *

Marlene, Max, PJ and I went into the dark forest after we said our goodbyes to the Cullens. Jacob offered to escort us on his way home, but we politely declined the offer. He looked like he didn't get much sleep for the past few weeks. It was time he'd got some long hours for himself.

"You know, I'm going to miss them," Max said suddenly.

"Yeah, me too," PJ agreed.

The happy atmosphere was tainted by a hint of sadness. We had promised no sadness to bother the mood, but there was something about the moment that made the sadness impossible to block out completely. It felt like a thick cloud about to drop upon us like raindrops. Not a sharp stab of knife, just harmless raindrops.

I decided to shove it aside. There was still a mission ahead of us, waiting to be accomplished. And I must move ahead to finish it. After it was over - no matter how much time it will have to take - we could come to visit again.

Marlene held my hand and nudged it gently.

"We will see them again real soon," she said under her breath.

Her reassurance cleared the clouds in my heart.

I smiled back. "Yeah."

Once we reached our destination, Max prepared for embarking.

"All right, everyone! Time for our next adventure," he exclaimed.

And the ship beamed us up.

We rested a few minutes before preparing for departure. Max decided to let me take the pilot seat while he took care of the engineering; he'd already been pilot for the first two weeks when we decided to gather witnesses. PJ took the navigator system and Marlene was in charge of cleaning the ship and cooking for us later while Jiminy maintained the communication link between our ship and Disney Castle. Gene was kept in the storage room, in his golden Arabic lamp, waiting to grant one of our wishes in needed times.

And here we were once again. Back to our old routine, preparing for a new adventure, finding Keyblade masters, and clearing monsters to protect the worlds from a mysterious, malicious plot. And as always, we still had no clue of who was behind the great malice.

But, as always, I wasn't afraid. We had gone a long road trying to find the source, and even though we were yet to find out who was behind it all, the adventures had given endless joy to our quest. We had made countless friends across the worlds, awakened many Keyblade masters, and tracked down all the Princesses of Heart. They were all under marble-protection by now. And most of all, the friends that we'd met had given me different points of view, and made me much stronger than when I first began.

My heart. My being. It wasn't alone. It had found a home within everyone's heart just like they'd found a home in mine, and as long as we remembered each other, our hearts will become one.

"All right! Off to another adventure!" I exclaimed loudly.

"Yeah!" everyone yelled in enthusiasm.

I pressed the forward button and the rockets blasted us forward.


	22. Epilogue: Bella: The Happily Ever After

BELLA CULLEN

We were kissed and hugged and wished a good night to our family. The only off note was Nahuel again, who looked intently after us, as if he wished he could follow.

Once we were across the river, we walked barely faster than human speed, in no hurry, holding hands. I was sick of being under a deadline, and I just wanted to take my time. Edward must have felt the same.

I looked up to the sky. A shooting star crossed the horizon. I didn't need a logical explanation to know that it was Sarox and the others. They had gone to continue their adventure.

"I'm going to miss Sarox and Marlene, and PJ and Max," I said.

"Me too," Edward agreed. "Not only because of what they did, but they gave quite some hope around here when we lacked it." And then he switched the subject. "And I have to say, I'm thoroughly impressed with Jacob right now."

"The wolves make quite an impact, too, don't they?"

"That's not what I mean. Not once today did he think about the fact that, according to Nahuel, Nessie will be fully matured in just six and a half years."

I considered that for a minute. "He doesn't see her that way. He's not in a hurry for her to grow up. He just wants her to be happy."

"I know. Like I said, impressive. It goes against the grain to say so, but she could do worse."

I frowned. "I'm not going to think about that for approximately six and a half more years."

Edward laughed and then sighed. "Of course, it looks like he'll have some competition to worry about when the time comes."

My frown deepened. "I noticed. I'm grateful to Nahuel for today, but all the staring was a little weird. I don't care if she is the only half-vampire he's not related to."

"Oh, he wasn't staring at her - he was staring at you."

That's what it seemed like... but that didn't make any sense. "Why would he do that?"

"Because you're alive," he said quietly.

"You lost me."

"All his life," he explained. " - and he's fifty years older than I am - "

"Decrepit," I interjected.

He ignored me. "He's always thought of himself as an evil creation, a murderer by nature. His sisters all killed their mothers as well, but they thought nothing of it. Joham raised them to think of the humans as animals, while they were gods. But Nahuel was taught by Huilen, and Huilen loved her sister more than anyone else. It shaped his whole perspective. And, in some ways, he truly hated himself."

"That's so sad," I murmured.

"And then he saw the three of us - and realized for the first time that just because he was half immortal, it doesn't mean he was inherently evil. He looks at me and sees... what his father should have been."

"You _are_faily ideal in every way," I agreed.

He snorted and then was serious again. "He looks at you and sees the life his mother should have had."

"Poor Nahuel," I murmured, and then sighed because I knew I would never be able to think badly of him after this, no matter how uncomfortable his stare made me.

"Don't be sad for him. He's happy now. Today, he's finally begun to forgive himself."

I smiled for Nahuel's happiness and then thought that today belonged to happiness. Thought Irina's sacrifice was a dark shadow against the white light, keeping the moment from perfection, the joy was impossible to deny. The life I'd fought for was safe again, and Sarox and his friends were part of the credit. My family was reunited. My daughter had a beautiful future stretching out endlessly in front of her. Tomorrow I would go see my father; he would see that the fear in my eyes had been replaced with joy, and he would be happy, too. Suddenly, I was sure that I wouldn't find him there alone. I hadn't been as observant as I might have been in the last few weeks, but in this moment it was like I'd known all along. Sue would be with Charlie - the werewolves' mom with the vampire's dad - and he wouldn't be alone anymore. I smiled widely at this new insight.

But most significant in this tidal wave of happiness was the surest fact of all: I was with Edward. Forever.

Not that I'd want to repeat the last several weeks, but I had to admit they'd made me appreciate what I had more than ever.

The cottage was a place of perfect peace in the silver-blue night. We carried Nessie to her bed and gently tucked her in. She smiled as slept.

I took Aro's gift from around my neck and tossed it lightly into the corner of her room. She could play with it if she wished; she liked sparkly things. Then, I put the music box beside her bed.

Edward and I walked slowly to our room, swinging our arms between us.

"A night for celebrations," he murmured, and he put his hand under my chin to lift my lips to his.

"Wait," I hesitated, pulling away.

He looked at me in confusion. As a general rule, I didn't pull away. Okay, this was more than a general rule. This was a first.

"I want to try something," I informed him, smiling slightly at his bewildered expression.

I put my hands on both sides of his face and closed my eyes in concentration.

I hadn't done very well with this when Zafrina had tried to teach me before, but I knew my shield better now. I understood the part that fought against separation from me, the automatic instinct to preserve self above all else.

It still wasn't anywhere near as easy as shielding other people along with myself. I felt the elastic recoil again as my shield fought to protect me. I had to strain to push it entirely away from me; i took all of my focus.

"Bella!" Edward whispered in shock.

I knew it was working then, so I concentrated even harder, dredging up the specific memories I'd saved for this moment, letting them flood my mind, and hopefully his as well.

Some of the memories were not clear - dim human memories, seen through weak eyes and heard through weak ears: the first time I'd seen his face... the way it felt when he'd held me in the meadow... the sound of his voice through the darkness of my faltering consciousness when he'd saved me from James... every precious moment from the island... his cold hands touching our baby through my skin...

And the sharp memories, perfectly recalled: his face when I'd opened my eyes to my new life, to the endless dawn of immortality... that first kiss... that first night...

His lips, suddenly fierce against mine, broke my concentration.

With a gasp, I lost my grip on the struggling weight I was holding away from myself. It snapped back like stressed elastic, protecting my thoughts once again.

"Oops, lost it!" I sighed.

"I _heard_ you," he breathed. "How? How did you do that?"

"Zafrina's idea. We practiced with it a few times. Merlin helped now and then."

He was dazed. He blinked twice and shook his head.

"Now you know," I said lightly, and shrugged. "No one's ever loved anyone as much as I love you."

"You're almost right." He smiled, his eyes still a little wider than usual. "I know of just one exception."

"Liar."

He started to kiss me again, but then stopped abruptly.

"Can you do it again?" he wondered.

I grimaced. "It's very difficult."

He waited, his expression eager.

"I can't keep it up if I'm even the slightest bit distracted," I warned him.

"I'll be good," he promised.

I pursed my lips, my eyes narrowing. Then I smiled.

I pressed my hands to his face again, hefted the shield right out of my mind, and then started in where I'd left off - with the crystal-clear memory of the first night of my new life... lingering on the details. The moment our Keyblades appeared in front of us; designed after our love.

I laughed breathlessly when his urgent kiss interrupted my efforts again.

"Damn it," he growled, kissing hungrily down the edge of my jaw.

"We have plenty of time to work on it," I reminded him.

"Forever and forever and forever," he murmured.

"That sounds exactly right to me."

And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever.

THE END


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